The Lesson Learned
by gneebee
Summary: Daryl Dixon and Beth Greene meet the first day of kindergarten. They promise to be friends forever, to always have each others backs. Friendship leads to love, can it really last forever? Daryl Dixon Beth Greene AU Romance / Drama AU
1. Chapter 1

**A/N It's the first day of kindergarten and the first time Daryl Dixon and Beth Greene meet. Let's go on a little journey with them.**

 **For a prompt on Bethyl BFF Week on Ultimate Bethyl Fic List.  
**

 **Trigger Warnings for Child Abuse.**

The first day of kindergarten was the day they met and the day Beth Greene and Daryl Dixon became best friends forever.

When Mrs. Murphy saw his name on her list of incoming students it instantly took her back to 10 years earlier. His older brother Merle had been in her class then.

It wasn't that Merle was an inherently a bad boy; it was more that the cards were stacked against him from day one.

He had no school supplies, never had lunch, and his clothes were thread bare and mostly torn and ill-fitting. He could have received help in the form of school lunch and donated supplies, but his father a nasty foul smelling man told her gruffly, "Dixons don't take no charity." That had been that.

The next day when Merle Dixon came to school Mrs. Murphy suspected he'd been physically abused. During the school year she felt that way more than once.

She'd mentioned it to the principal, and she'd even talked to child services, but there was no physical evidence of it. He always wore long sleeves, long pants and the few times he'd been asked leading questions, he'd been tightlipped and stoic.

There was no reason to think his younger brother would be any different.

The good news was there was another student she was very excited to have in her classroom, Beth Greene. Mrs. Murphy was a member of the same church the Greenes attended and she knew the little girl.

She was a sweetheart. So innately kind, generous and always friendly. Beth Greene saw the good in all things.

The idea struck her she'd seat Daryl and Beth next to each other. Beth was just the little person to share her supplies with someone who didn't have any. At least it would be a beginning.

* * *

It started that very first day of school. The classroom was equipped with child-size two student tables. She and Daryl were seated next to each other at one of those little tables.

The teacher asked each of the students to say their name aloud, and each time one did the other students were all to say "good morning."

Beth was shy but also excited and she proudly said her name when it was her turn. When the teacher called on little Daryl Dixon he just looked down and mumbled inaudibly. Mrs. Murphy decided to leave it be for now.

But Beth had heard him and softly said to him, "Good morning Daryl."

He just nodded without looking at her.

* * *

The teacher wanted to assess just how much her new students knew. Each of the children was given a clean sheet of lined paper and told to write their name and their ABC's as well as they were able.

They all got out their pencil cases and Beth and Mrs. Murphy both noticed Daryl just looked down. Mrs. Murphy had every intention of giving him a pencil to use. But she saw Beth take an extra pencil from her pink plastic box and hold it out to him. He pushed her hand away and muttered, "Dixons don't take no charity."

The little girl had a hurt, sad and frightened look. The teacher quietly went to Daryl and told him to follow her to the only semi private place she could think of, the coat room.

"Daryl do you think you should try to be nice when someone is being nice to you? Beth wasn't trying to give you charity she was offering to share with you, to let you use her extra pencil. It's called being nice Daryl, it's not charity. Now you've hurt her feelings when all she wanted to do was be your friend. Maybe you should tell her you're sorry and thank her. What do you think?"

He shrugged his little shoulders and almost put his thumb in his mouth, but quickly pulled it away when he realized what he was doing. He went back to his seat and although he didn't look at her he did mutter, "Sorry n thanks I didn't bring a pencil today."

The little blond handed him the pencil and this time he took it.

* * *

At recess Daryl held back from the other children. Just quietly watching them play. Then he saw that bully named Shane pull her ponytail and tell her she was skinny and ugly. The hurt look on her face made Daryl unhappy and very angry. She was his new friend. His only friend.

He went right over to that bully, pushed him hard and said, "Don't ya be talkin' like that ta her an don't ya touch her no more. I'll knock ya on yer ass." Not the usual threat for five year olds, but Daryl Dixon wasn't living the life of most children his age.

It was probably a real good thing the teacher was out of earshot.

But Daryl had made his point and that was the last time Shane Walsh bothered Beth Greene. At least in kindergarten.

When Beth got off the school bus she ran as fast as she could into the big farmhouse, straight to the kitchen and Mama. She couldn't wait to tell her Mama all about school and her new friend. She was talking a mile a minute. "…and Mama Daryl didn't have a pencil so I shared, and a boy tried to be mean to me and Daryl didn't let him, and Daryl didn't have a lunch so I gave him my apple. He didn't want to take it but I told him if he didn't I was throwing it in the trash. And Mama Daryl didn't know how to write his ABCs. Can he come over after school tomorrow and I can give him an ABC lesson? Please Mama?"

Mama had caught on to just what the trouble may be with little Daryl. "I'll tell you what, why don't you ask Daryl if he can come over tomorrow. Tell him your Daddy needs help with the gate. When he's done helping Daddy you can help him with his ABCs. Daddy or Otis can give him a ride home."

After Daryl had "helped" Daddy fix the gate Daddy told him they could only afford to pay him with supper. Daryl didn't complain. For the first time in his short little life he had a full tummy.

That was the start of many, many visits Daryl would make to the Greene farm. He became like a member of the family and he and Beth grew closer and closer with each passing day and each passing year.

All through elementary school and middle school they remained best friends. Daryl came to the Greene house two or three days a week after school to do homework with Beth. She was good at reading and writing and he was good at math and history. They helped each other.

Daddy always made a point of saying, "Daryl if you'll help me with my chores I'll pay you with supper. How's that?"

And the boy was always willing.

Over the years he taught her how to bait a hook, cast a line, clean a fish. He taught her how to track a rabbit and a deer and how to shoot a bow.

She taught him how to saddle a horse, ride a horse and how to cool the horse down after the ride. She taught him how to make rock candy and the names of the flowers in the yard.

They had an undeniable bond. They'd promised each other many times that they had each other's backs, that they would never let anything or anyone ruin their friendship.

* * *

In their Junior Year of High School their strong friendship hit a rather large bump in the road. The bump's name was Shane Walsh.

Daryl had never been able to tolerate Shane Walsh, not since he'd pulled Beth's ponytail in kindergarten. Now that asshole was trying to be her boyfriend and Daryl didn't like it one bit. He didn't know exactly why he didn't like it, but it was making his blood boil.

His only other close friend besides Beth was Rick Grimes. Rick teased him just a little, "You know you like her in some kinda special way. You can keep trying to tell yourself ya don't, or you can admit ya do. Maybe then you'd be the one gettin' a kiss instead a Shane."

"You just shut the fuck up Rick! Beth would never kiss that prick."

'Oh yeah hot shot? Well I saw them kissing right behind the gym the other day and he might a been trying for more."

Daryl didn't speak to her for a month after that. He was hurt, angry, devastated. He just didn't know how to handle all those feelings. He didn't tell her any of it, he just shut down.

She was heartbroken. Mama couldn't help, she didn't know what was going on. Her friend Amy couldn't help, she didn't understand it either.

Finally Beth went to Rick one day at lunch. "What the heck is wrong with Daryl? He won't talk to me, won't look at me. He's just mean and crabby and I know his grades are slipping."

Rick could see she was shook up but hey, he and Daryl were brothers, he couldn't be ratting him out. "I don't know, why don't you ask him?"

"Don't be that way Rick, I know you know so tell me or I'm going to tell Lori you said she smells funny."

"I swear Beth if you do I'll never speak to you again! And I can't tell you but here's a hint, next time Shane Walsh is kissing you ask him if he knows why Daryl's mad at you."

It took Beth just a minute to digest that, and then she just said, "Oh."

* * *

She was supposed to meet Shane behind the gym and she'd decided when she saw him there she'd tell him it was over, she wasn't going to be meeting with him, or kissing him. He was getting too pushy anyway and it made her kind of scared. He just wasn't the right guy. He just wasn't Daryl.

When she got there Shane was nowhere in sight. It was Daryl who was leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. His knuckles were bloody and he had a big mark on his cheek.

She had a pretty good idea of exactly what had happened. She went right over to him, she was angry, but also touched, flattered and really quite happy. But she wasn't ready to tell him that. Yet.

"Daryl Dixon what did you do?!"

He was obviously angry and hyped up on adrenaline. He did something he'd never done, he yelled in her face. "Ya wanna know girl? I'll tell ya what I done! I knocked that sumbitch Shane Walsh right on his big dumb fuckin' ass, like I shoulda done when we was in kindergarten. I told him then he better never touch ya again, I guess he didn't remember that. I had ta remind him."

"Daryl you're being such a jackass!"

"Oh yeah, what about you, huh? Did ya let him touch ya anywhere? Ya think that means he likes ya? He ain't never gonna really like ya. Just wants ta have his way with ya, like he does with every girl in school. Then he'll toss ya aside and move on to the next notch on his belt."

With that she started to cry, "You stop that Daryl Dixon! You don't get to talk about me like that! All the sudden you just stopped being my friend. You started being mean, ignoring me. We promised we'd always be best friends, that we'd never abandon each other, that we'd always have each other's backs. YOU'RE the one who tossed me aside!"

Her words hit him square in the heart. She was his best friend, and he'd promised himself a long time ago he would never hurt her. He was just so confused because he didn't really understand these new feelings he had for her.

He turned his back to her and she realized he was crying too. She moved closer to him, tried to reach out to him but he pushed her arm away. She stopped for a minute, but she wasn't giving up, she'd never give up on Daryl. He was everything to her.

She fully committed then, practically throwing herself into his back. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist, her head resting on his back. She was quiet, she just listened when he began to speak.

"I'm sorry Beth. I just couldn't stand the thought a him kissin' ya, touchin' ya, yer my girl, ya always have been my girl from that first day a kindergarten. I want ya ta always be my girl. My best friend and my girlfriend."

And then she spoke, "That's what I want too Daryl, to be your best friend and your girlfriend, the person you always believe in. I just didn't know you had those feelings for me, didn't know you like me that way."

He said it low, but she heard it, "I love ya Beth, always have, always will. I'ma love ya forever. Ain't never gonna be be no one else for me. Never."

She smiled and said, "I love you too Daryl. I've loved you since the first day of kindergarten. You're everything to me. I never wanted Shane, I never wanted anyone but you. Forever."

It was then he turned around, he put his hands in the blond curls that framed her face and he kissed her.

 **A/N Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks so much for reading a long xo**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N Thanks so much to all of you. Our story is going to continue. This chapter picks up right where we left off, Beth and Daryl are Juniors in High School. We're going to follow them on quite a life journey. But for now, let's see how they handle their new found love.**

Nobody in the Greene family was the least little bit surprised by Beth and Daryl's realization that they weren't just best friends, it was more. They loved each other.

The family had been waiting for them to come to that awareness for years.

But to the young couple it was big news. And as much of each other as they'd been seeing, now they wanted to spend even more time together.

* * *

His older brother had gotten out on parole a month earlier. He'd been in the pen 10 long years and he wanted to make this new freedom work. An old friend in the sheriff's department believed in him. He'd helped him land a job with a big construction outfit and Merle had been towing that line.

He got to work early, stayed late and he kept his mouth shut and his nose clean. It was working out.

He rented what he could afford at the time, an efficiency apartment. It was small but it was big enough for him and Daryl. And that's how it went, he had Daryl move in, away from the shack, away from their poisonous old man. "A little more time on the job little brother and I can get a bigger place for us."

When the foreman mentioned they were looking for part time help to do cleanup work Merle immediately thought of Daryl, and sure enough the kid had been hired.

He worked a couple of hours after school each day and all day Saturday. Most of his time was devoted to cleaning up construction sites, but the boss had promised him that if he kept at it, proved he was dependable and interested, eventually he'd put him on as an apprentice carpenter.

He and Beth had talked and agreed he'd save as much of his money as he could and when they had enough for a down payment on a little house, they'd take the plunge. They'd get married, buy the house, have kids, all of it.

In the meantime they were still in High School, still mostly care-free and just enjoying being together. He was still coming to the farm three nights a week, but rather than after school it was after work.

Mama would hold dinner until he got there so they could all eat together. Then he and Beth would race through their homework so they could go walking.

They'd walk through the peach orchard or down near the creek, holding hands when they did. They'd share the high school gossip of the day and talk about their plans and how great their life was going to be as soon as they were married. They even knew how many kids they wanted, three, and what their names would be.

Two boys, Max and Wes, and a little girl named Anabelle. It was going to be perfect.

And they'd kiss and fool around a little, but they'd agreed, they were waiting until high school graduation to take that big physical step. They weren't even sure why that seemed like the right thing to so, but they thought it was.

All the love and sweetness and caring did not go unchallenged, it wasn't as though they never disagreed or got jealous.

She was madder at him than she'd ever been at anyone when he absolutely refused to go the Sweetheart's Ball for Valentine's Day. But no matter how angry she was he just kept saying "No."

She'd gotten so upset she hadn't spoken to him in a week.

And then Valentine's Day had rolled around. That morning a delivery car had showed up at the farm first thing. The delivery was for her, a dozen red roses and a box of chocolates. The note said, "I know I'm a dick. Sorry. I love you, D."

And she'd cried and been mad at herself for being mad at him and she could hardly wait to text him. She told him how much she loved him, and that she didn't care about the stupid dance. She asked him to come for Valentine's Dinner and she'd make his favorite dessert, brownies with vanilla ice cream.

On his lunch break he'd texted back, "You know I'll be there, can't wait."

And the second happiest couple in the world was Mama and Daddy because her moping around for the last week had been driving them up a wall. Heck, Mama was so relieved she even cooked their favorite meal, fried chicken.

And then there was that time he got so jealous of the new guy at school, Zach.

Why the fuck was she being so nice to that pretty boy? Did she like him? Did she change her mind about everything they were, everything they felt and all their plans just because some new guy showed up?

But what pushed Daryl over the edge was when she said she couldn't have lunch with him because she'd promised to help Zach with his English homework. No, oh no, that would not do.

"What the fuck Beth? Yer my girl, why ya givin' that pretty boy yer time? What? Ya like him or sumthin'? Want him more than ya want me?"

"Daryl I can't believe you're acting like this! I promised I'd help him with his homework, not kiss him!"

And that just made him more mad and he stormed off campus. And she started to cry.

Amy saw her crying and rushed over to comfort her, "What happened Bethie? Why the tears?" And she told her friend what had happened and Amy put her arm around Beth's waist and she smiled at her sweetly and she asked, "Do you know that new girl, Andrea?"

Beth was a little confused, "Well yeah, I have two classes with her." She couldn't figure out why Amy would change the subject like that, and during her darkest hour and all.

"She's pretty isn't she? And she has those big boobs she's not afraid to show off a little."

"Amy do you mind telling me why you're talking about her when I'm pouring my heart out to you?"

"Well I was just wondering how you'd feel if Daryl told you he couldn't have lunch with you because he was going to help Andrea with her math homework, that's all." And Amy just raised her eyebrows at her.

And Beth ran off campus, pretty sure she knew right where he'd be.

And he was there, at "their" little spot in the woods next to campus, sitting with his knees up and his back leaning against a tree, a cigarette between his lips and tears in his eyes. He looked up and saw her and she ran right to him. She got down next to him, put her arms around him and told him, "Daryl I never want to have lunch with any boy but you! I love you. Please don't be mad. I guess I just didn't think about your feelings enough."

"I ain't mad at ya Beth, I'm mad at me. I shoulda just talked to ya 'bout how I's feelin' 'stead a yellin' at ya an runnin' off. I wish you'd tell me ta go fuck myself when I pull that shit."

And she was laughing through her tears when she said, "Well I couldn't do that Daryl, I don't use that kind of language."

They both laughed then and the mood shifted back to happy and in love teenagers. They stayed in "their" spot, just talking and kissing until he had to leave for work.

* * *

But when they finally pushed Mama's last button and made Daddy cuss out loud was the last day of school before spring break.

The juniors and seniors had been whispering about it and plotting for weeks, they were going to make it a ditch day. If they all just didn't show up for school what could the principal do about that?

They weren't going to suspend half the school, why it would probably just be a slap on the wrist and everyone would go back to the usual routine. Yeah, no problem.

Everyone was meeting up at the lake. Wear your bathing suit, bring your beach towels, girls bring food, boys bring the coolers full of sodas. It was going to be perfect.

And everyone showed up except for a few goody-two-shoes types who went to school. Losers.

There were tubes and floats and all kinds of other water toys. There were chips and sandwiches and cold fried chicken, cookies and brownies. It was a teenage feast.

Sure there were some cokes and sprite, but the majority of the boys seemed to think something with a little alcohol might be more fun.

There was lots of beer and wine coolers. Bobby Ray's family had an apple orchard and he brought several gallon jugs filled with hard cider.

* * *

Daryl and Beth had done some floating out on the lake and they swam and played around in the water a little. Then they made their way back to their spot off to one side of the lake front. He was drinking beer, she was having hard cider and they were just taking in the fun and every ones' craziness.

As the afternoon passed and the effects of the alcohol came into play, there were couples sneaking off together into the trees, and boys and girls who weren't even couples before were coupling up to go to the woods together for a while.

Two of the senior boys were mooning girls, and a couple of girls, who'd maybe had a little too much hard cider, took their bathing suit tops off. One of them was that new girl, Andrea. Shane Walsh grabbed her right up and they laughed and kissed all the way into the woods.

Daryl was starting to think maybe this party had gotten a little bit out of control. He didn't really want Beth around all that. But he couldn't leave now they'd both been drinking, they couldn't be driving.

Then Bonnie Jones and her boyfriend Sam Johnson got in a big fight. It seems Bonnie thought Sam may have gotten a little feel of some other girl's bottom. Bonnie, she was known for having a real hot temper, she was ready to kill Sam and that sleazy girl both.

He was telling her she was crazy and she was telling him he'd better take her back to town or she was breaking up with his stupid ass right here and right now.

Sam was all in love with Bonnie so of course he said he would. They got in his truck and off they drove.

No one thought a thing about it really. Bonnie and Sam's fights were legendary. In fact everyone kind of smiled thinking they'd probably end up back at the lake in an hour or so, kissing and acting like nothing ever happened.

Bonnie and Sam didn't come back. It turned out they'd had a little run in with a deputy when they hit town, and in an effort to save herself Bonnie had spilled the beans about where they'd been drinking.

An hour and a half after Bonnie and Sam left, the party was descended upon by what appeared to be every law enforcement officer in five states.

Kids were scrambling trying to outrun the law but it didn't work out for them. It was no more than 30 minutes until the police had them all corralled in one spot.

Even the few kids who hadn't had a drop of alcohol were hauled in. They were held on some throwback truancy law from God only knew when.

Of course Daryl blamed himself that she was caught up in this and he was immediately apologizing to her, and she had to remind him, "Daryl it was my idea to come, remember?'

But when they tried to split everyone up, boys together and girls together, that's when Daryl got stubborn with the law. He was not leaving her alone. It was his fault, his responsibility and he would be taking care of her, period.

What the fuck were they going to do, arrest him twice? Well probably not, but that didn't mean they weren't going to add charges.

They got what seemed like every teenager in town to the station. It turned out the cops never had any intention of charging any of them. No the punishment was far worse than that. They called everyone's folks.

The cops knew who Daryl's Dad was and there was no sense calling him, he was in the drunk tank himself. So they called Daryl's older brother, at work.

And of course they called Dr. Hershel Greene, the local veterinarian.

In other words, it was ugly.

Mama and Daddy and Merle all arrived at almost the same moment. Mama and Daddy were mad, Merle was mad, but he was also scared. He didn't want baby brother falling into all the traps he had.

He did feel a lot better when he realized it wasn't that Daryl had been drunk and disorderly, or drunken driving, it was just dumbass teenage horseshit with a lot of other dumbass teenagers. Well he'd put the fear in the kid and see if he couldn't nip this shit in the bud.

Before Daryl left with Merle, Daddy told him, "You and I will be having a very serious discussion about this shit real soon son." Daryl was thinking that was pretty fucking great, he not only had to take shit from his brother, but from Beth's Daddy too.

On top of everything else, Beth could not stop crying.

Mama took her by the arm and told her in no uncertain terms, "You think you're sad and miserable right now young lady, but you'd better believe your misery is just beginning!"

They took her phone away and grounded her for a month. School, home and church, that was it. They'd talked to Merle and he agreed, Daryl was school, work and home, period.

She begged, she pleaded, she cried, she tried to make deals, but they were not giving in on this one. She and Daryl had gotten themselves into this trouble and maybe they'd think twice before they got involved in such things again.

Daryl had fought with his brother about it, yelling at Merle that he was an asshole and he couldn't hold him prisoner. Well that set Big Brother off in a big way.

"Ya think this is like prison do ya? Think ya got it rough? Fuck kid, this here is a goddamn cakewalk. How'd ya feel if ya couldn't hug or kiss yer girl for 10 years? Ya think she'd wait? How ya thinkin' you'd like ta spend yer days watchin' yer back an fightin' for yer right ta exist? All locked up in a tiny cell with some murdering asshole ya don't even know, just tryin' ta get through it all day by day. Marking off them days til you could board that greyhound an get as far the fuck away from that joint as possible. Ya think this is prison?" And Merle had let out a disgusted laugh.

That's when Daryl charged at him, he was going to get tough with Big Brother. Merle immediately got him in a headlock.

"Ya think you can kick my ass? Well I'm sure the day will come when ya can son, but today ain't that day. I been fighting for my life everyday for 10 years, I've forgotten more about fighting than most guys have ever known. I can make yer life a whole lot more miserable than this here. Trust me kid, just fuckin' backtalk me one more time n it's on!"

Merle didn't like having to get tough with his brother, didn't want to have to be mean to the boy. But he felt he had to teach him a lesson, he didn't want the kid fucking up his life like he'd fucked up his.

* * *

They cherished that little bit of time they had together at school, and their one big break, Mama and Daddy had invited Daryl and Merle to Easter Dinner.

They couldn't take their eyes off each other all during that big dinner. Everyone else was concentrating on ham, scalloped potatoes, green beans, biscuits and deviled eggs. They were just concentrating on each other.

And when Daddy said they could take a walk, but just for an hour, they were so happy.

They practically ran into that peach orchard, and they didn't stop kissing and touching for a 45 minutes when they had to run all the way back.

And they'd agreed, they were never doing anything again that could cause them to be separated.

 **A/N Next chapter, summer. Thanks so much, please review / comment xo**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Thank you all so much! I'm glad you're enjoying this story because I'm enjoying writing it for you! Daryl and Beth are in the Spring of their Junior year of High School.**

 **There's confusion about a couple of things so let me clarify. This is not a flashback it's real time. Although we slowly progress through these fun "growing-up" years, our couple will have more adult issues as time passes.**

 **But until then let's have some 17 year old good times!**

He knew this shit meant something to her and he did try to make her happy but it seemed there was one of these dumbass dances every week. She knew he didn't like to dance, well maybe a slow one with her once in a while, but that was pretty much it for him. He wished she just wouldn't ask him. No such luck.

And he knew he couldn't just tell her no all the time. She had her heart set on this Junior Prom, he was going to have to do some serious thinking and then do some real convincing kind of talking.

"But Daryl you didn't take me to the Sweetheart's Ball either, or for that matter the Harvest Ball in October. We can't just always do what you like you know, you have to try things I like too. _Please_."

"I know an I ain't tryin' ta be a dick I swear ta you Beth. What I wanna do is take ya somewhere an have a special evenin' just you an me. Alone. I'ma make all the plans an it's gonna be a surprise. I'll take care a everythin'. I'll pick ya up at 6:30, don't eat dinner it's included. Sound alright? Oh, an it ain't gonna be too fancy, but I promise ya girl it'll be nice."

She took in a deep breath and shrugged her shoulders, "Yes it's alright, but you _have_ to take me to the Senior Prom next year, promise?"

"Alright yeah, I will. I'll even get ya one a them flower thingies, pin it on ya an all, k?" And when he put his arms around her and gave her that deep kiss she knew she was going to let him off the hook.

She also knew just about everything there was to know about Daryl Dixon and so she knew, he spent a whole lot of time out of his comfort zone trying hard to fit in and to make her happy.

And she was happy. Daryl was the best boyfriend a girl could hope for.

* * *

He was sunk and he knew it but he was going to do the very best he could. And he hoped like hell his best would be good enough.

He scouted out the place, yeah it was perfect. He even made a list of what he needed and he started to gather his supplies. He even decided to buy some new jeans and maybe a shirt. He couldn't be showing up for her in the same ratty clothes he wore all the time.

* * *

As much as she loved him, and she knew she never wanted any guy but him, she was kind of disappointed. She really wanted to go to this prom. She talked to Maggie about it.

"Bethie you've known Daryl practically your entire life can you seriously see him wanting to go to this stuff? And you know how he always tries hard to make it up to you. I think you have to feel good about that. And the Senior Prom is the really big one and he said he'd go to that. Most of these dance things are all about the girls trying to outdo each others dresses, and trying to prove how much their boyfriend loves them, and then going out afterwards and getting drunk and in trouble.

You have a guy everyone knows worships the ground you walk on, and it doesn't matter to him whether you're wearing a t-shirt or a party dress. You have nothing to prove. Wait and see what he has planned, I bet it'll be fun. And remember the important stuff, Daryl loves you and you love him."

Maggie was right she knew that and she made up her mind she was going to accept this and have fun no matter what.

When Amy asked her if she and Daryl were going to the Prom she smiled broadly and said, "Well Daryl wants to be alone so he's taking me somewhere special that night, just the two of us. It's a surprise and I'm really excited."

"Daryl Dixon is planning a surprise? And he wants to be alone? I never would have pegged Daryl for the romantic type Beth. You're the only one who saw his true boyfriend potential right from the start!" And the friends shared a laugh.

And the truth was there were plenty of girls at school who'd like a chance to go out with Daryl Dixon, but he only had eyes for Beth Greene.

Beth was the prettiest girl in school there wasn't a guy who wouldn't like to beat Daryl's time, have a chance to date Beth Greene, but she only had eyes for Daryl Dixon.

xxxx

The Saturday night of prom rolled around and Beth was excited, ready and waiting for Daryl by six o'clock. She'd dressed casually in tight jeans and a cute little tank top that showed off just a bit of tummy. It was Mama and Daddy's absolute limit on exposure. As much as they loved and trusted Daryl she was still their daughter, and still only 17.

Daryl was there promptly at 6:30 and she was kind of wishing she could show him off to all her friends because wow did he look handsome. He had on new black jeans, a tight black t-shirt and his Levi jacket.

He opened the truck door and helped her in and as they pulled away from the farm she was grinning ear to ear, she was ready to be surprised!

But when they started to drive up in the woods she wasn't all that happy. "Daryl I thought you were taking me somewhere special. What are we doing, going camping?" She knew she sounded a little bitchy but dang, he'd said special.

He was a little hurt by what she'd said, but he got it. "Just be patient. I think yer gonna like it an if ya don't, you can kick my ass an I'll just stand there and take it like a man."

When he said stuff like that he always made her laugh. "Stop it Daryl, this better be good or I might just take you up on that."

He stopped the truck and helped her out, then reached in the back and grabbed an ancient boom box and a CD case.

"C'mon girl I'ma take ya ta Dixon's Fine Dinin' an Dancin'.

He had a whole scene set up there on the creek bank. There was a card table and two folding chairs, he had a fire pit with rocks all around, there was a cooler, and a big blanket laid out.

He set the Boom Box down and slipped in a Blake Shelton CD.

Then he pulled one of the chairs out, made a big dramatic bow at the waist and said, "Miss."

She was smiling so big it almost hurt.

He smiled back, "I seen that in a movie once."

He put the wood it the pit and got the fire going. "I'm cooking dinner for ya just as soon as that fire gets just right. In the meantime can I get ya a coke?"

"Why yes please that sounds delicious." And he opened it with flair. She couldn't help but laugh. "Daryl if this carpentry job doesn't work out I'm thinking you ought to consider being a waiter in one of those real high class restaurants."

"That won't work cuz I ain't willin' ta wait on no one but you."

When the fire got just right he got in the cooler and took out a package of hot dogs, along with buns a squeeze bottle of ketchup and one of mustard. "How would ya like yer hot dog prepared Miss?"

"Well I think I'll take mine blackened please."

"That's real good cuz when I cook everythin' ends up blackened."

They had hot dogs and potato chips and he'd brought cupcakes from the bakery for dessert. As he served her he said, "I want ya ta notice I got them good kind of paper plates Chinet, cuz we're goin' extra fancy tonight."

And even he couldn't get through that with a straight face.

She countered with, "Daryl this is the perfect meal. I love it. In fact I think it's possibly the best meal I've ever eaten. I had no idea you were a gourmet cook."

"Well one time I watched an episode of that Guy Fieri show an I learned everythin' I needed ta know. Here, I'm even doin' the dishes." And he picked up the paper plates and threw them in the fire.

Then he went to the Boom Box and he opened the CD case and he held the CD cover up for her to see. "Every time I've heard this old song I thought a you an me Beth. I think it's our song. I think we oughta dance to it."

He put the CD in the player and went to her just as the old George Strait song began to play, 'Check Yes or No', she smiled "I love this song. Thank you Daryl."

And they danced to a few more songs and he told her "I'm real sorry I didn't take ya to the prom. I don't mind dancing when it's just me an you alone Beth. Heck I like holdin' ya close n stuff. I just ain't much a one for those party dances an bein' all dressed up in a monkey suit. But I'ma make that effort cuz I know ya wanna go. I promise I'ma try harder ta do the things ya like ta do."

"Daryl I don't think I could have more fun than this. I love all of it but I especially love how you thought of everything and set this all up. How special you tried to make it. I love it and I love you."

The kissing began then and before they knew it they were laying on that blanket and things were getting heated in a hurry. They'd tried so hard for so long to hold back and they'd been successful so far. But that didn't mean they hadn't played around a little.

He was kissing her with a lot of want and very little self-control when he reached his hand up the back of her shirt and snapped her bra open without missing a beat. He gently pushed her on her back and lifted the shirt up, a hand went to one breast and his mouth to the other.

Neither one of them was complaining. They were breathing hard and his mouth found its way to her neck and he was kissing there, sucking just a little. They were both making little soft moans when his hand slid down between her legs. At first she didn't protest but then she quietly said, "We'd better stop or we won't be able to. I don't want to stop, but we don't have protection or anything and I'm not sure we're ready if we did."

He'd stopped immediately and he began to apologize, "I'm so sorry Beth, ya ain't mad are ya? I gotta do better at controllin' myself."

"I think it's getting tougher and tougher on both of us Daryl. It's not just you that wants this, wants more, it's me too."

"I know we said we'd wait Beth an I swear to ya I mean ta try and hold ta that, but damn girl it's not gettin' any easier."

"We'll just have to try and if we can't and something, you know, does happen, we need to be protected. I think that's your issue you're the one who has to have protection. I mean just in case, but I still want to try and wait Daryl."

"Alright. I'll get sumthin' just in case. We sure don't need ta be someone's Mama and Daddy at 17."

* * *

They enjoyed a couple more dances and a lot more kissing, and then it was time to get her home.

He quickly got everything in the pickup bed but just as he was helping her in he saw it, "Ah shit."

"What Daryl? What's wrong?"

"Dammit Beth I done it, I gave ya a hickey."

"What?! Oh my gawd Mama and Daddy are going to have a fit!"

"Fuck Beth I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. Shit I didn't think I's suckin' that hard."

"Well maybe they won't even notice." She looked hopeful.

Yeah right, she couldn't see it but he could, there was no way they'd miss that thing. It was big and purple looking. Fuck. He knew her Daddy would not appreciate that one bit.

They pulled up to the farm and he helped her from the truck. They kissed right there and said their I love you's, then he walked her to the door and as she walked in he headed back to the truck. But before he got the door open he heard her Daddy.

"Daryl Dixon you get yourself over here young man." Ah fuck.

He turned with his head hung and made his way back to the house. Daddy held the door open. "Sit, both of you."

Daddy looked pissed and Mama didn't look real happy either.

"I'm not so old that I don't remember what it's like to be young and in love. But I think maybe it's time we all had a discussion about setting limits."

Daryl was flustered, but he spoke, "Honest Hershel nothin' happened. I mean yeah we was kissin' an I admit I sucked on Beth's neck too hard but we wasn't doin' anythin', well ya know what I mean." Poor Daryl, his face, neck and ears were all beet red.

Daddy continued, "Son I want to believe you, I do believe you you're an honest young man. But one thing leads to another and that's when there can be trouble. And there are other considerations. At 17 are you two mature enough to even be thinking about a physical relationship?"

That was Beth's breaking point, "Daddy! Please stop we don't need to hear this. We're not doing anything like that and we don't plan on it. We've already discussed that stuff and we're waiting. Daryl didn't mean to do this, he was just teasing me. Sheesh."

Daryl was looking at her and he was kind of amazed that she could spin this so well. He thought he knew everything about her, but damn she was like a politician or something.

"Alright, that's good to know and I'm going to put my faith in you both. I won't punish you this time but you remember your commitment to wait."

"Yessir, I will, I promise."

"Of course Daddy, Daryl and I have made a promise to ourselves and to each other. Now please can we just drop it? I'm so embarrassed." Yeah, Daryl planned to talk to her later and find out how she learned all this manipulation stuff. She was kind of masterful.

And when Daryl left Daddy called his brother Merle, he filled him in on exactly what had happened and his concerns.

Merle agreed completely, they couldn't be going down that road. Yep, he and Daddy had an accord.

And when Daryl got home Merle told it to him good, "Damn kid, ain't I taught ya better than that? Ya never leave yer mark where a girl's Daddy can see it, shit. And ya listen ta me now, if it gets ta where the two a ya are gonna be doin' that horizontal bop ya gotta keep Little Daryl covered up. Ya don't wanna be makin' no babies when yer 17 years old."

Daryl flipped him off on his way to the bedroom and muttered, "Fuck you Merle."

Merle just laughed and said, "That's my boy!"

 **A/N Merle had just a slightly different take on the situation. And heck I was supposed to get you through summer in this chapter, maybe we'll go there next chapter. If you'd like to hear the song Daryl chose it's George Strait "Check Yes or No." I heard it on the radio the other day and it reminded me of Daryl and Beth in this story. Thank you for reading and I'd appreciate comments / reviews xo**

 **To see pictures of our couple follow my tumblr blog bethylmethbrick**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Thanks so much for the follows, faves and reviews, you guys rock! It's now the summer after Daryl and Beth's junior year of high school.**

They managed to stay out of trouble through the remainder of their junior year of high school, well at least they never got caught at anything. And now summer had arrived.

Like most young people, they were happy and anxious to see the passage of time. They were looking forward to becoming adults. They imagined they'd be able to enjoy their lives on their own terms, not answering to parents, or teachers or anyone else. It was going to be so much easier, so much better, so much more fun. They just couldn't wait.

* * *

Unlike Daryl and his carpentry, Beth didn't feel a draw to any particular type of work. She just couldn't decide what she'd want for a career. She took a summer job at the day care center and they put her in the infant and toddler care section. Never had she realized how many times a day babies and little children need their pants changed, their noses wiped, their tears dried, needed food, needed cuddles or needed a little gentle scolding. Sheesh, kids really were a full time job.

But found she liked caring for children, she fell in love with the little people, and she was thinking maybe this was a career she'd enjoy pursuing. Something like early childhood development, well she'd see, for now there was no pressure.

She was saving as much of her money as she could. They'd agreed he'd save his for the down payment on the house, she'd save hers to buy furniture and things they'd need.

* * *

Daryl's boss had followed through with his promise and Daryl was working as an apprentice carpenter, directly under the lead.

The job he was working was a huge custom home, it was one of those trophy homes. It was being built for a way older guy with a real young wife. It seemed both of them were playing some kind of role.

The other guys joked around about it calling it "love for financial gain" or whatever, but Daryl didn't have time to give two shits he was there to learn a trade. He had goals, he wanted to learn everything he could, make the money, save every penny possible, buy the house and marry Beth.

When he set his mind to something he didn't waver. He felt like he was catching onto the work quickly and that he was doing really well. And the good news was his bosses and the clients were pleased with his work.

That made him feel proud and made it all seem worth it, working six days a week, from 6:30 in the morning until six at night. It was just a little easier to handle knowing he was appreciated.

The only real problem was they didn't get to see much of each other. When he wasn't working he was exhausted from those long days. All he wanted to do was go home and take a hot shower, eat and hit the sack, before he had to start it all over again the next day.

Beth tried real hard never to complain, after all the payoff was going to be worth it, and they still had Sundays. He'd use the morning hours to get caught up, sleep in a little, do his laundry, buy a few groceries for lunches and whatever. Then he'd be at the Greene farm promptly at 1:00pm for Sunday dinner.

Hershel had told him more than once how proud he was of him for working so hard, for having goals, for keeping his priorities straight. After visiting with her family for a while, they'd escape for a walk through the peach orchard or down by the river. They'd finally have the chance to catch up, talk about how great things were going with their work and with their savings. But most importantly they'd be able to catch up on the kissing and the touching, and the just holding onto each other that they'd missed so much during the week.

xxxx

This year 4th of July came on a Thursday and her Mama and Daddy were hosting a big barbecue party at the farm. He and Beth had opted to join her family for that, rather than head to the lake with their friends. They'd have more alone time that way, escaping to the orchard and the river, and with all the time they were forced to be apart time together meant more to them than any party.

He had to work that Friday after the 4th but the day care was closed for the entire holiday weekend. She decided to surprise him on the job, bring him a nice lunch. There was so much left over fried chicken and potato salad and pie she packed him a cooler full of goodies. Daryl loved pie and she'd wrapped him up a piece of blueberry and a piece of the peach.

She drove to the job site in Mama's car and she was instantly taken aback by what she saw. There stood Daryl with a cigarette in his hand talking to a petite but very busty brunette. She had on a pair of impossibly tight shiny pink pants and silver stilettos. Her tee-top could not have been any smaller or showed any more skin, from her big fake boobs popping out the top of it, to her ripped abs below. It should have been illegal. But the worst of it was, the woman kept touching him, rubbing her hand along his arm, touching his side, smiling in a flirtatious way.

Beth was not okay with this.

He did look uncomfortable, kind of like he wasn't sure what he was supposed to do, and about then he spotted Beth. He looked relieved. He said something to the woman while pointing toward Beth and the car, and damn that woman if she didn't touch him just one more time before he turned away, right on the hip!

He walked toward the car with that little smile of his and she loved that smile, but she was feeling decidedly pissy. Maybe it was the heat of the day, or the woman's big boobs that had practically been staring him in the face. Or maybe it was just the fact that they hardly got to spend any time together at all and she missed him, and damn that woman she did have those big boobs, and why did she keep touching him like that? And worse, did he like it?

Beth wasn't happy, not at all. And when he hopped in the car with that smile and said, "Hey Baby I wasn't expectin' ya." She lashed out at him, "Oh I just bet you weren't Daryl Dixon, is that why you're letting that woman touch you that way? I mean seriously Daryl could she have been coming on to you any more? She practically shoved those big fake boobs right up your nose. She's still looking over here at you, I ought to go over there right now and pull her fake hair extension things right out of her head."

And that's when Daryl made a critical mistake, yep, he laughed.

Now Little Miss Beth Greene was mad at the world in general and Daryl in particular. "Just what the hell are you laughing at?!"

"Well damn yer all kinds a fired up girl. What? Ya kiddin' me? Ya think I'm interested in that chippie? Shit, I think she done half the guys on the crew, and damn if she ain't the wife a the rich old bastard that we're buildin' this McMansion for. Besides Greene, ya really think I'd be interested in anyone 'sides you? Ain't I made a promise to ya? Ya sayin' now I ain't a man a my word? I told ya a long time ago I love ya an I ain't ever gonna love no one else, ever. Ain't I been bustin' my fuckin' ass every goddamn day tryin' ta make money for us so we can get a house? Why? So you can act like I ain't bein' real? Fuck this shit, if that's what ya think a me I oughta just quit now an lay around the fuckin' lake the rest a the summer."

And Beth started crying then, "I'm sorry Daryl, please don't be mad, you're right I just got jealous. She's so pretty and she has those big boobs, and I could tell she likes you, and I've just missed you and I just love you so much, and I'd die if I lost you." She was shaking now and he was worried she was going to hyperventilate.

"Alright baby, shit let's just forget it, can we? Can we just have this little bit a time together 'fore I have ta get back ta work?"

All she could manage was a nod. He wrapped his arms around her then, "I love ya Beth, that's all ya ever gotta know 'bout me. I sure ain't interested in no one's cheatin' wife, 'specially one with phony boobs, phony hair an a phony smile." He had a hand cradled to her cheek and he was gently coaxing her to look at him.

And in a teasing voice he demanded, "Now dammit kiss me."

And that was so out of character for him they both started laughing.

They had their lunch together, and they still had time for some serious make-up kissing before he had to go back to work.

xxxx

Like summer always does, the time passed quickly and soon they were coming up to Labor Day Weekend. The last "official" weekend of summer.

They'd started back to school two weeks earlier and he was back on a part time work schedule. She'd decided to stay on part time at the day care and was now handling the after school crowd, ages five to eight.

They'd settled into a whole new routine but they still didn't feel like they got to see enough of each other.

So for Saturday night of that Labor Day weekend they'd planned an outing to the creek, the spot where he'd taken her for their private "prom." They we're going to be having hot dogs and potato chips again, and she'd cut up some watermelon and brought macaroni salad. He may have managed to snag a few of Merle's beers.

They got to "their" spot just about five. They were feeling pumped up for a fun evening of just the two of them. He made a fire ring with rocks and got the fire started for their cook-out. They laid the big blanket down, and this time they'd brought beach chairs to sit in.

He had Merle's old Boombox and they had their favorite CD's in the case. She put on a Chris Singleton CD, he cracked them each a beer.

They figured if they did their drinking early they'd be completely sober for the ride home. Plus they were going to be eating later so no problem. Right?

They'd each had two beers and they were buzzed and from the alcohol, the heat of the day and the lack of food. They were feeling happy and playful, and maybe just a little bit "touchy" with each other. And damn it was mighty warm down there by the creek.

She brought it up, "We should go swimming." He just looked at her with that little half smile of his and asked, "We ain't got our swimmin' suits, whaddya got in mind there Missy?"

She blushed a nice hot pink color, cast her eyes down just a bit and said, "Daryl quit it. I thought we could you know, leave our underwear on."

"However ya wanna do this I'm in." And he stood and held a hand to her, helping her to her feet.

She let him start. He took off his shoes and socks, then his shirt. When he did that it always gave her a little stab of sorrow deep in her heart. She hated to see all the scars his father had left on him, but she did a good job of pretending not to notice.

Finally she got a little brave and she took her shoes, socks and capris off, leaving just her panties, her bra and her t-shirt. She decided she'd leave that little shirt on, she wasn't sure she was feeling quite brave enough to swim with Daryl while only wearing her underwear.

Of course later, when hindsight kicked in, she'd think about the fact that underpants and a bra were probably no more revealing than most bikinis, but it was just the idea of it I suppose.

He'd taken his jeans off and she couldn't deny that the sight of him in just his boxers got her a little worked up.

He was looking at her and her beautiful bare legs and cute little panties and he could feel himself getting aroused, shit, he didn't want to embarrass himself or her either. So he ran right into the water until he was waist deep. He started scooping up big handfuls of that chilly water and splashing it at her, "C'mon now don't be a chicken, this was yer idea so get yer little self in here with me!"

And she'd laughed and run in that water and he'd taken her by the waist and dunked her and then brought her up for air. She was trying to be mad at him, but it was funny. She was giggling and he was laughing, and she was trying her very best to dunk him. She just didn't have quite enough muscle.

But the closeness, her legs wrapped around him, her hands on his head trying to push him under, which practically put her breasts at his mouth level, you know, all of it. And it was warm and they were buzzed, and they were in love.

It was a deadly combination of circumstances for a young couple trying to remain chaste. And of course they started to kiss and his hands were on her bottom holding her to him, and he was hard and she knew it, and she was feeling that warmth and that wetness for him. He put a hand up her shirt and she welcomed it, in fact she lifted her arms so he could lift her shirt off, tossing it on the bank. And then he snapped her bra and for just a moment they looked in each others eyes, and she nodded "Yes."

He took her bra off and tossed it like he had her shirt. He had his mouth on her breast and she was moaning softly and nuzzling his neck, and she put her tongue in his ear and she was sucking on his ear lobe and his neck. It was then he crossed that border and entered into territory they hadn't yet explored. Yep, he put a hand down her panties. He was rubbing her there where he hadn't been before, and they were both on the edge with this new found need and right then she came, and that was enough to make him do the same.

Once they'd caught their breath they were both a little embarrassed but they were also feeling real good. Of course Daryl was a little self-critical. "Shit Beth, we didn't even get to the real deal and I lost it!"

She smiled, kissed him, and whispered in his ear, "Well you lasted longer than I did." He smiled back and said, "I think that's how it's s'posed ta work Beth. You always get ta go first."

And then they were both laughing again.

Oh it was all wonderful and satisfying and then they started looking for her bra and t-shirt. They couldn't find either.

He told her to put his shirt on and wait for him, he was going looking. He swam down the creek and found nothing. He came back to their campsite, put his pants on and walked down the creek. He found the bra, the strap had gotten hooked to a tree limb.

He never did find the shirt. They were in deep shit and they knew it.

Well being practical and all, and knowing her Daddy was going to kill them both anyway, they decided to make the most of it. They cooked their hot dogs, listened to some good music. And then they couldn't resist, they had to try it again, that particular kind of touching they now knew would get them there, without breaking the promise they'd made each other to wait for graduation.

Besides once he got her home without a shirt, there was a good chance her Daddy and Mama wouldn't let them see each other again until graduation anyway.

Might as well have a little fun before they met the wrath.

* * *

When they pulled up to her house he got out of the truck and helped her out, and they held each other tight for a minute, "I'm so fuckin' sorry Beth, this was all my fault. Please forgive me Baby I love ya so much."

And she told him, "Daryl it was my idea to go in the water, and it was my idea for you to take my shirt off. It happened and it's not your fault. I love you too Daryl."

He held her hand, they both took a deep breath and they walked in.

Just like always her Daddy and Mama were waiting right there. Needless to say, they were a little shocked to see Daryl standing there shirtless while their daughter wore his shirt.

Daryl was just about to speak, ready to take all the blame for what had happened, but she beat him to the punch.

"Mama and Daddy I'm so sorry, this is all my fault. I accept complete responsibility for everything. It was my bad judgment. It's just that it was so hot today and the water was so inviting and cool. And I told Daryl I wanted to go swimming, he pointed out that wouldn't be right because we didn't have our suits. But I kind of pressured him into it, you know how I can get, and of course we left all of our underwear stuff on and I kept my t-shirt on.

When I got out of the water Daryl wanted to keep swimming down the creek, so I thought well while he's gone I'll just take my t-shirt off, hang it on this branch and it will be dry and back on me before he ever gets back. But guess what? It must have fallen in the creek while I had my back turned putting my shoes and socks on. I didn't know what else to do so I put Daryl's shirt on. When he got back I explained what happened, and well you know Daryl he's such a gentleman, he insisted I just wear his shirt and he'd do without. And he looked for my t-shirt for over an hour and never could find it.

I know it was wrong we should have worn suits up there, but it was all my dumb idea and all my fault."

Daryl couldn't take his eyes off her and he was pretty sure his mouth was hanging open. Fuck Merle could take lessons from her, she was a masterful weaver of bullshit if ever one lived. And damn if she didn't look all kinds of sweet and sincere when she lied that pretty little ass off. Damn girl.

Daddy was not real happy, Mama wasn't exactly thrilled herself.

Daddy tried to get harsh, "Beth this was not a good decision. I see you realize that now, but I would think a young woman who has been raised in a good home would know better. Teenagers! You kids just don't think things through! And Daryl in the future I would expect that when Beth comes up with her cockamamie notions you'll act as the mature one, tell her no. Don't let her bully you into doing things you know you shouldn't, just because she bats those eyelashes at you!"

"Yessir, I won't let it happen again. I'm real sorry sir and yer right I shoulda said no way." And he wanted to fuckin' laugh so bad, and he wanted to ask her where the hell she learned to lie like she'd just done. And damn if he didn't want to kiss her. And then there was his other thought, is Hershel really this dumb or is he playing us?

Damn, Little Miss Beth Greene had Daddy completely bamboozled.

Daddy said, "I'm going to have to punish you both. I hate to have to do this, you're both good kids and you work hard, but right is right and wrong is wrong, you have to learn. I'm grounding you for two weeks. You may keep your phone but no dates, and I'm sorry Daryl no meals here. And Daryl, I'll be calling your brother and letting him know what happened, I'm certain you'll face your own punishment."

He couldn't believe how easy they'd just gotten off thanks to his favorite con artist, but fuck, did the old man have to call Merle? Now he'd have to listen to his shit. "Yessir, and again I'm real, real sorry." He looked to her Mama, "I'm real sorry Ma'am." And then Beth, "Sorry I didn't take better care a ya Beth. It won't happen again."

And fuck if she wasn't crying and begging Daddy to change his mind. This woman should star in the next Hollywood blockbuster.

* * *

He walked in the door of their new digs, a little two bedroom rental house. Merle was sitting there on the sofa with a woman Daryl had seen him with a couple of times, name of Selma. "I got two questions for ya Little Brother. What the fuck happened ta my beers? And what the fuck did ya do with Blondie's t-shirt?"

Daryl flipped him off on his way to the bedroom and muttered, "Fuck you Merle."

And he heard that asshole laughing and Selma was too.

 **A/N Our couple had a little fun and got in a little trouble. And it seems our sweet little Beth does have Daddy bamboozled, and she could easily win an Emmy. See you next week for Senior year. Thank you all of reading, I'd appreciate your reviews / thoughts / comments xo**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N Thank you so much for the follows, faves and comments. And thank you for joining me on this journey with Daryl and Beth. We pick up right about where we left off.**

Daddy hadn't taken their phones away and all day Sunday they'd been blowing those phones right up.

They chatted about the fun they'd had and how they couldn't wait to do it all again, just as soon as they were off this stupid restriction.

That's when he texted, "You sure are a good liar Beth. You don't lie to me like you lie to your old man, do you?"

"Of course not Daryl, I don't have any reason to lie to you, and you're the only reason I have to lie to Daddy :)" That made him smile.

"I ain't ever seen anyone can make up a story like you, you lie your little ass off and look so sweet and innocent while you're doing it."

"You should see Maggie, I could never be as good as she is, where do you think I learned?" And that made him smile more because, yeah Maggie, she was a wild one.

* * *

They'd made plans to meet before school, early Monday morning in the woods right next to campus, at "their" tree.

He was waiting when she got there and he pulled her to him. They were kissing like it had been months since they'd seen each other. Well it felt like it had. "I missed ya baby, a lot."

She smiled, "I missed you too, this is awful. Of course I know it could have been a lot worse, so I'm trying not to complain too much about two weeks." She smiled that sassy smile at him and he laughed.

"Yeah I'ma tell Merle yer gonna give him lyin' lessons, tell him maybe if he was good as you the cops would believe him more."

"Oh stop it Daryl, you'd better never say anything to anyone!"

"I won't if ya gimme one more kiss." And of course she was happy to give him what he asked for.

They didn't want to take chances on being late to class and getting in any more trouble than they already were. They wanted to be spending their time together so they made the walk over to school, hands interlaced, and had a hurried kiss goodbye, "See ya for lunch."

* * *

Amy asked her what they'd gotten in trouble for this time. Even though Amy was her best friend she had no intention of telling her everything she and Daryl had been up to. She wasn't taking any chances of it getting around school that she'd come home from a date missing an important article of clothing.

"You know how time can get away from you Amy, well Daryl and I were having our own private Labor Day cook out and we got home a little late. Thank goodness we only got grounded for two weeks."

Again at lunch they met by their tree, and they ate their sandwiches just as fast as they could so they could have time to just hold each other, walk, talk and be what they were meant to always be, together.

As hard as it all was, time passed more quickly than they'd thought it would, the fact they were both so busy working after school every day probably helped.

* * *

Finally it was over. They were back to their routine.

He was at the farm for dinner two or three nights a week, they went out on Saturday nights, and he came for Sunday dinners. Just like it was supposed to be.

It was Wednesday night at dinner that Daddy surprised them. "I called Merle this morning and invited him and his lady friend to join us for Sunday dinner. I thought it would be real nice if we all got to know her, after all I assume they'll be getting married sometime in the near future."

Daryl almost spit out that big drink of milk he'd just taken. He managed to recover and get out, "Yeah, uh, that was real nice a ya."

Shit.

When they got to the orchard, they kissed and then he said, "Damn Baby this is fucked up."

"Oh now Daryl how bad could it be? Merle's been here for dinner before and it was just fine."

"Yeah well what about this Selma chick? You met her, for crissake Beth yer folks are gonna take one look at her and pass right out!"

She couldn't help herself, she started to laugh. "Oh Daryl it's not that bad. Lots of people dye their hair pink these days."

"Ya ain't funny Beth. And fuck baby what about the way she dresses? Shit, if she shows up here with them big boobs poppin' outta her shirt yer Mama's gonna need oxygen."

"Oh Daryl I'm sure it will be just fine. Merle knows Mama and Daddy I'm sure he'll talk to her about all that."

"Yeah right girl like Merle don't love stirrin' shit up!"

She put her arms around him then, holding him tight, "Daryl you worry too much. I just know everything will be fine. And besides Daddy and Mama aren't going to hold anything she does against you. They love you the same as any of their other kids."

Her words surprised him. He looked at her not knowing what to say. They loved him? Like their other kids? That was impossible to believe. But if he thought about it they'd always been real good to him, feeding him, looking out for him, even when they were a pain in his ass he knew they always had his best interests at heart. They were what parents were supposed to be, they were a safe place, they were dependable, they gave a shit. And if he admitted it, he loved them too. They were the only real parents he'd ever had.

Old thoughts, old feelings long buried, they started coming up. He didn't like it, it was uncomfortable, it was painful. He sought comfort from the one person he knew could bring him that relief.

They started kissing and he wanted to just forget all those shitty feelings. He just wanted to get to that other feeling he had with her, he needed that physical and mental release. All this emotional bullshit was a lot for Daryl Dixon to deal with.

He wanted to get there with her, he needed her. And maybe he was a little more forceful than usual, because maybe he was a little more needy than he could ever remember being. And maybe she got that, and maybe she wanted to be what he needed and maybe she wanted to satisfy those needs he had.

And right there in the peach orchard with her parents just yards away, they gave each other that pleasure, that release.

Afterward he held her tight, "Sorry baby, I shouldn't be like that with ya, don't mean ta ever be too rough with ya."

She tried to sooth him, he was having some kind of hard time and she just wasn't quite sure what it was all about. But whatever it was, she wasn't mad. "It was good Daryl, we were good. You weren't rough you were just a little more forceful than usual. But I didn't say 'no' or 'stop', did I? You needed me and I wanted you to need me. I love you, don't be sorry."

"Aw baby ya treat me so much better than I deserve."

"That's where you're wrong Daryl Dixon you deserve the best things life has to give."

* * *

Those dark thoughts wouldn't leave him, and thinking about things later that night he knew why it hurt, he knew why it had gotten to him and he didn't like thinking about that. He didn't like thinking about how his own Mama didn't take care of him, didn't take care of Merle, and she died because she didn't take care of herself.

And his own so called father, that fucking dumbass. He couldn't think about him without filling with rage.

He'd always be grateful to her Mama and Daddy for letting him escape to their house, but their love for him, their caring, also made him wonder how it could be that strangers would care for him more than his own folks.

He felt grateful to have Merle too. Merle could be a giant pain in his ass but he knew Merle cared about him, would do anything for him. And it was Merle who'd gotten him the fuck out of there as soon as he could.

It was all so confusing. And it was way too much for his 17 year old mind and heart to have to deal with, so Daryl did what Daryl always did, he stuffed those feelings way down somewhere deep inside, and he did his very best to pretend they weren't there.

And he turned his thoughts to her. The best thing that had ever happened to him was Beth Greene. He'd soon be 18 and Beth had been the most important person in his life since he was five. Who knows what would've become of him if it hadn't been for her? She was his light and always somewhere deep in his heart he knew he didn't deserve her. He'd been getting by with it all these years, but for all their plans, and no matter how much he loved her, and no matter how much she said she loved him, he always felt it. Someday Beth Greene would realize she deserved so much better than Daryl Dixon.

* * *

Merle must have had a little talk with Selma because her hair was more of a blond color than pink, her boobs were fully covered, and happily she barely said a word. But then when you got Hershel Greene and Merle Dixon in the same room, no one else needed to worry about keeping up their end of the conversation anyway.

Daryl had to admire his brother's skills with bullshit and playing the role. And he realized that Merle did this for him, to support him in one of the few ways Merle could. His brother knew how much he loved Beth, and these were Beth's people.

But Daryl also knew Merle took a certain kind of pleasure in pulling one over on people.

Then again, Merle did seem to genuinely like the farmer, even though the two of them couldn't be more different men. Shit, who knew what Merle was thinking? Probably not even Merle.

xxxx

She couldn't quite believe it when he asked her if she wanted to go to the Harvest Ball, he'd been so crabby about it just last year that she wasn't even going to mention it to him this year. And YES she wanted to go!

Maggie took her shopping in Atlanta on the Saturday morning before the dance. They had so much fun, both of them trying on nearly every inappropriate party dress in every store in that huge mall. Beth would put on a dress with a plunging neckline and a slit up the leg, and Maggie would react to the dress as if she were Mama or Daddy, they laughed until they cried.

They finally chose a dress they thought was the sexiest and the hottest that Mama and Daddy would actually let her walk out of the house wearing. That meant it wasn't sexy or hot, but it sure was pretty.

Maggie hugged her, "Daryl's eyes are going to pop right out of his head when he sees you Bethie. You're already the prettiest girl in school, now you're going to be the sexiest one too. You and Daryl are the perfect couple, and definitely the best looking couple that high school has ever seen."

"Oh Maggie, come on." She was blushing but she agreed about Daryl, he was the most handsome boy in town, well as far as she was concerned, in the whole world. She knew about the girls who liked him, oh maybe they didn't want him as a boyfriend, but they definitely wanted to mess around with him.

That knowledge always scared her a little. Even though she knew Daryl loved her, she worried maybe he'd get tired of waiting, maybe he'd just take one of them up on it. But in her heart she knew him, that wasn't Daryl, Daryl was true, it was the person he was.

* * *

Rick's Mom and Dad were going out of town the weekend of the ball. Some sort of business convention or something. None of those teenagers could care less about where, just as long as the adults were gone.

Rick and Lori, Daryl and Beth, Amy and Caesar, those kids had a plan in place.

Beth told Mama and Daddy she was staying at Amy's house after the Ball, and Amy told her folks she was staying with Beth, and Lori told her Mom she was staying with Amy too. Daryl didn't tell Merle anything. He knew Merle would just figure he got lucky.

He picked her up promptly at 6:30 and of course Mama couldn't take enough pictures. He could see why her Mama and Daddy would want lots of pictures of her, she looked so fucking pretty. She was in a long yellow dress with a tight waist and a full skirt that was sort of flowing. It kind of seemed like it was low cut but it wasn't really. That front was up high enough nothing showed. He was glad her folks wouldn't let her wear anything that showed much of anything, because even though he'd never told her, he didn't want her showing it off either.

She was all smiles when she saw him, he looked so good. She hadn't expected him to rent a tux and he didn't. He'd agreed to that for the prom and that was good enough for her. And besides, she was sure he couldn't look any more handsome than he did right now. He had on a black long sleeve shirt, a black tie, black Dickies and black boots. He looked hot and he didn't even know it, and she was proud to be with him.

She had her little overnight case with her, and Mama and Daddy kissed her goodbye and told her to have fun and they'd see her in the morning for church.

The last thing Daddy said was, "Now son take good care of my baby girl and have fun." Daryl almost felt guilty. Almost.

"Yessir."

They got to the dance and the mood was definitely festive. It seemed everyone had after party plans, none of which included going right home and going to bed, alone. She decided there had probably been more lies told to parents this week than in the town's history.

One thing everyone noticed was Bonnie Jones' tummy. It had a definite fuller, rounded look to it. And Sam definitely had that deer in the headlights look. UhOh. Daryl looked at Beth, "Shit girl, now there's a good damn reason ta be careful. We ain't ready for that." She just nodded, it was a big dose of reality.

The music was good, and the snacks were good, and she even got Daryl to dance a few times.

But the evening was not without a bit of drama. Shane sneaked out to smoke something, probably not a Marlboro, and Andrea immediately started trolling. What Beth didn't understand was why she came right over to Daryl, and right in front of her she asked him, "Hey Daryl you look real nice tonight, why don't you dance with me?" Beth was about to yell at the other girl but she didn't need to. Daryl looked at her hard eyed and said, "I don't dance with no girl but my girl. An my girl don't dance with no one but me. Ya best go on now."

Beth was so proud of him and she felt so special, Daryl loved her and he wasn't afraid to let everyone know. Sigh…

The three couples slipped out of the party about an hour early and met at Rick's. They were ready for big fun. Daryl had a six pack of beer for himself and a four pack of wine coolers for Beth. Caesar had a six pack of beer and a bottle of Fireball for him and Amy, and Rick had a six pack for himself and a bottle of Buttershots Schnapps for Lori. They were all set for a big night.

They hung out in the front room and Rick got the music going. They were drinking and dancing and talking and laughing. They were full of alcohol and hormones, and it wasn't long before the situation got what you might call romantic. Yeah, let's call it that, romantic.

Rick and Lori slipped off to his room, Caesar and Amy seemed to be getting mighty worked up on the sofa, and Daryl lead Beth into the guest room.

Just about the time it was getting to where they didn't know if they could keep their promise to wait for graduation, there was a loud banging on the front door. Oh fuck.

It was none other than Beth's Daddy and Merle. Beth's Daddy was so angry it seemed his face was on fire.

Merle was looking pissed too, but Daryl figured he was putting on a show for Hershel.

As it turned out Amy's Dad had taken sick in the night, scared the wits out of her Mom. She'd called Annette to have her send Amy to meet her at the hospital. Mama was confused at first, she told her Beth had said she and Lori were staying with Amy. Aha. You can figure out how it went from there.

Daddy called Merle to meet him, then got himself dressed and he was out the door, gunning for bear. Merle just did his brotherly duty, got dressed and headed over to Grimes' house. Not for one minute did he understand what the big fucking deal was, sounded like just some regular kid bullshit to him, but he'd go along and see. Stand back and watch.

Oh it was ugly.

Beth was crying and begging, "Daddy I promise we didn't do anything bad. We just had a little bit to drink and then we kissed but that was all Daddy honest. It was just going to be like a slumber party, you know staying up all night talking and laughing, watching scary movies and making popcorn. And don't be mad at Daryl, he didn't even want to come. I told him if he didn't I wouldn't speak to him for a week. I forced him Daddy. I'm sorry, please believe me, we were good I _promise_. You know Daryl would never take advantage of a situation and you know how committed we are to waiting." And holy cow the waterworks really got to flowing, hell even Lori and Amy started to cry.

Merle was enjoying every fucking minute of watching Blondie shovel shit at her old man. The girl ought to move to New York, be one of those Broadway actresses.

Daddy was so mad he couldn't even think clear enough to decide what kind of punishment this mess called for, "Merle, you, Selma and Daryl will be invited to take Thanksgiving Dinner with our family, because that will be the next time these two are allowed to see each other, outside of school. Daryl I've told you in the past, you have to learn to say 'no' to Beth. She doesn't use good judgment and I've told you it's your responsibility to be the one who keeps a clear head, but you continue to let her manipulate you. I'm sorry son, we'll miss having you at the farm."

Beth tried, "But Daddy it's not even Halloween yet, Thanksgiving's more than a month away. I'll die before then! Please Daddy PLEASE! I promise I'll be good."

"Get in the car young lady, and you too Amy I'll be giving you a ride home. Fortunately it was a false alarm and your Dad is fine. Lori your Mother has been called she'll be by soon, and Caesar your Dad will be here any minute. Rick, I'll be talking to your father when he gets back tomorrow. I'm just so terribly disappointed in all of you."

Merle still hadn't said a word, he was fascinated by all of this carrying on and bullshit going down, but he was one to put on a good show himself, so he looked real tough at Daryl and he said in his orneriest voice, "Ya get in the car boy, you an me are gonna be havin' us a serious talk 'bout this."

That was music to Daddy's ears. He was happy to know he and Merle were on the same page.

They got in Merle's truck and Daryl was looking seriously sullen, and Merle was pissed off, "Shit kid ya ruined my fun, I's just about ta get my nut with Selma when the fuckin' phone started ringin' off the goddamn hook. I oughta kick yer ass."

Daryl just flipped him off and muttered, "Fuck you Merle."

The next evening when Daryl got home from work, right there on his pillow was the biggest box of condoms he'd ever seen. He slipped two in his wallet, and put the rest in his underwear drawer.

 **A/N It seems Daryl came face to face with some long buried demons out in the orchard, we'll see how that plays out later. And in case it's confusing, no, Daryl and Beth did not have sex in the orchard, they just did what they do for each other. In the meantime, our gang is raging with hormones and unable to stay out of trouble. Poor Daddy is beside himself and Merle, well you know what I always tell you, Merle is Merle. Thanks so much for reading along and I hope you enjoyed. I'd appreciate your comments / reviews xo**

 **To see photos of our couple, and to get update notices on my stories, please check out my tumblr at bethylmethbrick, and I very much appreciate FF follows. If you enjoy reading the "young version" of Daryl and Beth, consider reading my fic The Biker and the Bobby Soxer. Thanks again and I'll see y'all here next Thursday! x**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N Thanks so much I always enjoy reading your reviews and messages. Last chapter we got a hint Daryl was struggling with some long buried feelings, it's going to come up a bit more this chapter. Of course our couple's also going to have some fun, they're young and in love!  
**

They were both leaving for school so early every morning they were beating the teachers and the staff there. Of course Daryl and Beth weren't really going to school, not until they had to, they were meeting at "their" tree.

They thought they were getting away with something but no one was fooled.

Merle knew Daryl didn't love school, he was counting the days until graduation, so there was sure as hell no reason to get there more than an hour early. But he didn't care he wasn't holding Daryl to any kind of restrictions. He just made sure the boy honored Hershel Greene's wishes.

As for Daddy, he wasn't as clueless or as hard on them as they all liked thinking he was, hell he'd been young once. And Shawn and Maggie had put him through his paces with all the shenanigans they'd pulled. And Daddy knew those kids loved each other and how hard it was on them to be apart. He was just trying to teach them their life lessons as best he knew how. That life had some rules. You don't always get to just do what you want, and actions have consequences. How old you were didn't really have much to do with that, it was just a part of life.

And he truly did love Daryl like his own. And he admired the boy who, against all odds, had managed to pull himself up and was making a life for himself.

So Daddy just pretended he was dumb enough to believe Beth wanted to be at school extra early to study. After she'd leave Mama and Daddy would laugh about all this studying she was doing, saying she'd be on the honor roll any day now and getting a full ride to Harvard.

* * *

When they saw each other it was always as if they hadn't seen each other in months. It was torture all this being apart. They'd vowed they were going to be smarter from now on, be real careful. They didn't have long to go, it was already the beginning of November and graduation would be here before they knew what hit them.

They'd talked about that too and as much as they wanted their independence, to have their own place and do as they pleased, they had to save their money for the house, the furniture and the things they'd need.

They agreed she'd continue to live with Mama and Daddy and he'd continue to live with Merle. They'd be saving every penny they could for their future, it was getting closer and closer.

It would sure be more fun if they could just get a little place together but they had a goal. There was nothing either of them wanted more than to achieve that goal. Get the house and get married.

"Even though we can't get our own place right away, maybe we're gonna get a chance ta have time alone together at my house. Merle ain't seein' Selma no more. Been seein' a new woman an she ain't the typical kind a woman Merle goes for. She looks like someone's Mom not someone's hooker. She don't flash nuthin' an she don't talk dirty. She seems nice, it's just kinda weird ta see Merle with a more regular kind of woman.

Anyway, he's been goin' ta her house every night for two weeks but she don't let him stay, he's always home by 11. If he keeps up with seeing her then when yer off the restriction maybe you an me will have a place ta hang out by ourselves, have us a little privacy, at least while he's out."

And they'd shared a big smile and a bigger kiss.

But there was something else Beth noticed, something seemed to be on Daryl's mind. And for a while now he'd seemed just a little off, a little down. She asked him about it. "Ah I dunno it ain't really anythin'. I guess I just miss ya's all."

He didn't want to tell her about those thoughts that kept coming up. Those uncomfortable feelings that were weighing on him. Hell he didn't want to talk about it to anyone. What good would it do? None. Just bring up a lot of old bullshit that ought to stay where it belonged, in the past. And he sure didn't want to mention it to her, she didn't need to know the hell that had gone on in that crappy old shack.

xxxx

Thanksgiving arrived and that's just what they were doing, giving thanks. Finally they were off restriction. At least they'd have a little more time to be together now. They'd have their dinners during the week, their Saturday nights and their Sunday afternoons.

They could hardly wait to get out in that orchard later, but first they had to visit with everyone, then sit down to the dinner. All that time just wishing they were alone.

Merle had called Daddy a few days beforehand, because Merle did know how the world worked and how "good folks" did things. This was Little Brother's world now and as ornery as Merle was capable of being, he wanted to help the kid find his happiness. And he'd had a twinge of worry about his brother lately, the kid seemed kind of down.

He'd called Hershel Greene and explained to him things hadn't worked out too well with Selma. He used the classic line, "we had our sights set on different goals." Daddy understood, a couple needed to be like minded in what they wanted. And Merle told him he had a new woman in his life and he asked would it be okay if he brought her to Thanksgiving. Of course Hershel said he and his family looked forward to meeting her.

So on that Thanksgiving they sat down to the big spread and everything was just lovely, and everyone was so grateful for the bounty and the love and good health of friends and family.

And ** _finally_** Daryl and Beth got to go to the Orchard. Even though they'd seen each other nearly every day, it still felt like months.

He hugged her close to him and she liked that feeling so much, his arms around her that way. And he spoke to her in a loving way like he always did when they hugged. But this was different, what he was saying was so different. He had his face buried in her neck and his voice was low, soft. "I don't wanna be a bad man or a mean man. I don't wanna turn into that. I never wanna hurt ya. I never wanna make ya scared a me."

She was a 17 year old girl in love with a 17 year old boy, a boy she'd known nearly her whole life. And she had no idea what he meant. "Daryl you're the nicest boy I know, you always have been. I don't understand what you're talking about, what you're saying. You're never going to be anything but a good man, I know that."

"I hope yer right Baby but damn I ain't sure." He hoped to God the meanness and brutality weren't inherited, but he'd read a magazine article that said the abused grow up to be abusers. Is that what he was going to become, a man just like his father?

She didn't know how to respond, she hadn't expected to come out here to the orchard and do anything but make-out and do some real serious touching. "I love you Daryl and you know that. You're worrying about problems that don't exist." He just kept looking down.

She decided to change the subject, "I can't believe your birthday's only two weeks away. You're going to be 18!"

"Yeah an adult. I always wanted ta be a man but now I think maybe bein' a kid might be better." Shit, would it start now? Would he start turning into his father now that he was 18?

"Well what do you want to do to celebrate? It's your birthday and you get to pick."

Finally he smiled at her, "Ya know yer too sweet don't ya Baby? Even though it ain't summer no more, I'd still like ta go to our spot at the creek an have a fire, cook out an stuff. Maybe my girl would make me brownies. How's that?"

"That sounds perfect to me but I thought you'd want more people, a bigger party."

"Nah I just wanna be with you Beth, no one else." Again he acted down. But then he started to kiss her and they got to touching and it seemed like everything in their world got right again.

xxxx

There was so much to be excited about this time of year, Daryl's birthday was just two days away and Christmas was just around the corner.

She didn't know which she was looking forward to more.

She'd told Daryl she was doing everything for his birthday and that all he was allowed to do was get the wood for the fire. Other than that she had it covered.

Wednesday Merle had told the boss that Saturday was Daryl's 18th Birthday and the man had smiled and said, "Take the day off and have some fun kid, but be back and ready to work Monday afternoon. Hear?"

"Yessir an thanks."

They'd thought they were just going to have a couple of hours Saturday evening, but now they had the whole day. This birthday was going to be so special.

Mama had let her use the car and she'd gone to their spot by the creek early that morning. She had everything laid out, the big blanket and an extra blanket if it got cold, the beach chairs, and she'd built the fire ring. It was perfect.

She'd begged Merle to buy them some beer, "Jesus Blondie, yer puttin' me in a helluva spot here. I don't mind if Daryl drinks a few beers but shit yer Daddy finds out I bought you beer he'd kill my ass, an shit Carol might be right there helpin' him. She's got a few different ideas 'bout things than I do, just like yer old man. I just can't do it kid. If he was gonna be drinkin' 'em at home, well I might consider it."

"Please Merle, I promise I won't even drink any it's just for Daryl, honest, I swear. And if we were ever to get caught, which I know we won't, I'll never tell it was you who bought it. I'd never even tell Daryl. _Please Merle_!"

"Ya know girl, ya get away with that shit now, but what're ya gonna do when ya get older an folks ain't buyin' that sweet an innocent line a bullshit no more? Then what?"

And she'd smiled brightly at him, shrugged a shoulder, but he didn't give in. "Can't do it Blondie, but if ya find someone who will and it accidentally turns out ya both been drinkin' ya call me, hear? I don't want no one drinkin' n drivin', we clear?"

"Yes Merle."

Well she'd struck out with Merle, but she had one more person she thought might do it, Caesar's older brother Javier. And she was right. She paid him for a case and he gave her two six packs and he kept two.

* * *

When Daryl picked her up Mama gave him a hug and Daddy shook his hand and they wished him a Happy Birthday. They'd bought him a new shirt and a pair of jeans. He told them how much he appreciated it, and he did. They had never let a birthday of his go by that he didn't get a gift.

He couldn't recall his own Mother and Father ever giving him anything, or even acknowledging the day.

Maggie and Shawn were both away at college but they'd each thought to send a card and the gesture meant a lot to him. Lots of people get cards in the mail for their birthdays but he didn't, for him it was a very big deal.

They got to their spot and he got the cooler and the picnic basket from the truck and got the fire going. The air wasn't too chilly yet, but it would be and he planned a little bigger fire than they usually had.

She'd brought her Pill and her IPod and she got the music started. "You're a lot more high tech than Merle," he teased her.

She laughed and then got in her bag and handed him a package, "Happy Birthday Daryl."

He smiled then and opened the small package to find his own IPod. He'd been wanting one for a long time.

"Wow, thanks Beth." And he'd hugged her close. "This is gonna be perfect when I'm workin'. I can drown out everyone else's crappy music."

She smiled at him, "I'm so glad you're happy with it Daryl, you're not exactly easy to buy for."

Then she dug in the cooler and handed him a beer, "Surprise!"

He smiled, "How'd ya get this Baby?"

"I'm sworn to secrecy so you just enjoy. It's your birthday and I want you to relax and have fun, I'll drive home."

They sat by the fire, his arm around her and her head resting on his chest. They stared at the fire and at the water that looked so inviting, but that they knew had gotten too cold for swimming. She giggled softly, "I wonder what ever happened to my shirt."

He almost did a spit take with that beer, "Damn we were lucky yer Daddy didn't kill us. I thought for sure he was never gonna let me come 'round ya again after that. You saved the day Baby." And he wrapped his arm around her just a little tighter.

"Are you hungry?"

"I am, but before I eat there's sumthin' else I wanna do." When he flashed her that crooked little grin she knew what he wanted and that was okay with her, she wanted it too. The air was cool so they didn't take much off but the clothes didn't stop them from having a good time.

When she got him to that place he'd been wanting her to take him, he actually laughed out loud, the first time she'd heard him laugh in a while. "Thanks for the Birthday present Baby."

She punched him in the shoulder and said, "That is not a romantic thing to say Daryl, you need to read a romance novel." But she was smiling when she said it and they kissed again and held each other tight.

Even though she'd made his favorites she noticed that he didn't eat much, but he was sure enjoying the beers. She didn't mind, it was his birthday and all. She'd just let him take the leftovers home with him.

He was three beers in and finally he felt he was ready to do this, "I gotta show ya sumthin' Beth, sumthin' on my back." She had a moment of panic. Surely his father hadn't shown up and hurt him more?

He turned his back to her and pulled his t-shirt up and over his head. A little yelp escaped her throat as she reached her hand up to touch him. "Daryl what did you do? Are those things tattoos?"

"Yeah that's just what they are. I done it a couple weeks ago. I don't know why but sumthin' was eatin' at me an I just felt like I had to, so I did."

"They look like some kind of devils. What are they?"

"Well they're kinda like devils I guess. They're my demons Beth, they been followin' me for a while now. Them things they just won't let me be. Since I can't seem to get away from 'em I just said fuck it, they're on board now."

"Daryl that sounds so depressing. Are you really that sad? What in the world is wrong?"

"I got sumthin' happy too." And he turned around and showed her. Right there above his left breast it said, "Beth."

She kissed him, told him she loved him and loved that he got her name tattooed on him, but she wasn't being completely honest. The truth was she was confused, unsure how she felt about all of this.

What was this change that was coming over Daryl? She didn't know and she didn't really want to think about it too much, she just wanted him to be her Daryl. To not be so dark.

They listened to music and they did dance a couple of times, but when he almost fell in the fire she pretended she was tired of dancing.

He wasn't being mean or acting stupid, not doing any of those things she'd heard drunks do, but he was definitely drunk. He'd managed to drink almost all the beer on a nearly empty stomach. She thought maybe it was time to get him home. "Daryl I think I'm going to break camp and we'll go, okay?"

He mumbled, "Yeah sure Baby sounds good." And he lay down on the blanket and he was out. She'd packed up everything and she still couldn't wake him up, and she sure as heck couldn't carry him. She didn't know what else to do so she called Merle.

Merle thought to call Hershel, "Just wanted ta let ya know the kids are stuck out there at their picnic site. Everyone's fine but they need some help gettin' out. I'ma get 'em an I'll get Beth home."

"Thanks Merle I appreciate you going after them and I appreciate the call."

* * *

Merle wasn't careful and he wasn't thoughtful. He looked at her, "If a guy thinks he's tough enough to drink 'til he passes out, then he needs ta be tough enough ta handle a wake-up call." And with that he lifted the cooler and dumped the melting ice out and onto his brother."

She was shocked but it did the trick. At least until they got him in Merle's truck, then he was out again. She covered him with a blanket to keep him from freezing to death.

On the way home she begged Merle, "Please don't tell Daddy. I couldn't stand it if he was mad at Daryl, _please Merle_. Anyway it was all my fault I brought the beer, and it's his _birthday_ Merle."

The man listened to her begging, her reasoning, her promising for about 20 minutes then he glanced at her and smiled broadly. "Ya ever hear the expression don't try an bullshit a bullshitter?"

"I got a high regard for yer Daddy, he's a real good man. I may not tell him every ugly detail but I'ma have a talk with him. And come tomorrow I'ma rain down some hurt on yer boyfriend an I don't mean I'ma ground him, although he might prefer that. Now let's have some peace an quiet while I drive an we enjoy the sound a Daryl's snorin'."

* * *

Merle told her Daddy he'd like to speak to him in private. Daddy looked to him and then to Beth and he sent his daughter to her room. Daryl was still passed out under a blanket in Merle's rig, and that wasn't lost on Daddy. He had a pretty good idea of what might be going on.

"There's things happened tonight I ain't so proud of Hershel. It seems my brother got himself good an drunk for his birthday. I feel sure Beth didn't drink, it was all him. An I give her a good mark for callin' me when she knew he'd gone too far. I want ya ta know I'ma handle this with him. It won't be happenin' again or he will not be livin' with me. He'll be spendin' his hard earned money on his own place. I apologize for the trouble my brother caused an I'll make sure he apologizes too."

"Thank you Merle. It's not easy to raise a child and your position is different, difficult. Daryl's a good boy, I know it and you know it. There's something I'd like to mention to you, I've felt Daryl might be having some kind of difficulty he just doesn't seem like himself lately. I wonder if you know of something bothering him."

"Yeah I noticed too an I asked him about it but he just keeps sayin' it's nuthin' an ta leave him alone. I just got no clue but I'm keepin' my eye on him. This is a big year for him an Beth. When Daryl graduates high school he'll be the first one a our family ever did. I don't want him ta do anythin' ta keep that from happenin'."

Hershel supposed he'd never thought about that, that no Dixon had ever achieved something that now seemed so common, high school graduation. He was proud of Daryl, and proud of Merle for wanting to make sure it happened. But he also shared Merle's concerns.

"We'll keep our eye on things here and if I have concern I'll talk to you." The men shook hands and Merle took his brother home.

Daddy was firm in his belief it was something Merle should handle and that he'd go along with whatever the man decided was the best course of action. Merle was a good man who'd made some wrong turns but Daddy didn't hold it against him, he'd made more than one wrong turn of his own.

* * *

Daryl was still out when his brother half carried / half walked him to his room and began to peel off his wet clothes. That's when he saw the tattoos, "Ah fuck kid."

It wasn't as if Merle didn't have a few tats of his own or that he objected to them. It was what Daryl had gotten tattooed, that he chose demons. It made Merle feel uneasy. Daryl was an 18 year old kid why would he be thinking about demons?

Merle was a different kind of man than his little brother, he took life head on and when something bothered or hurt him, his first instinct was to charge it like a bull and see who came up winners. But he knew his brother had a much more sensitive nature. There was a tenderness to Daryl he didn't really get. Something was bothering the kid and whatever it was, he wasn't willing to talk about it.

Come morning he did rain down on Daryl, and he did tell him he'd be getting a place of his own if this shit continued. But Merle knew that was bullshit, he'd never send his little brother away. And he didn't go quite as hard and mean as he'd originally had in mind. "It ain't that I care if ya have a beer or two Daryl, it's what ya done. Ya had yer girl up there, s'posed ta be celebratin' yer birthday with her but ya drank 'til ya passed out. Hell what was she supposed to do then? She sure as shit couldn't carry yer ass ta the car. Ya gotta think kid. Don't end up like me, yer better than that, so much better.

I know ya got sumthin' that's been worryin' yer mind, ya know you can talk ta me. Ain't nuthin' you can tell me that's gonna shock me, or piss me off enough ta not care about ya and for ya. Trust me on this one kid, whatever is botherin' ya it ain't possible ta drink enough ta drown it, I've tried that n it can't be done.

Ya gotta be careful with yerself Daryl, ya got a good thing goin'. Don't fuck it up kid. Please."

The whole time Daryl stayed with his head hung down. When Merle was done, he just nodded.

xxxx

He'd gone to the farm on Sunday and as hard as it was, as embarrassed as he was, he'd apologized to her Mama and Daddy and to Beth.

Daddy just nodded and said, "Alright son. Why don't you help me in the barn after we have dinner? There will still be time for your walk with Beth."

When he and Daryl were in the barn Hershel told him about his own father, and he told him about his own drinking problem and what it had cost in his life, what it had taken from him. "I'm not mad at you son, I just don't want you to do to your life what I did to mine."

Later in the orchard he apologized again, "I'm sorry Baby I fucked up bad, ain't gonna do it no more I promise. And I swear I'll make it up to ya for yer birthday, I'll make it special. I love ya so much, please don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad Daryl, I was sad and I was a little scared you'd hurt yourself, especially when you almost fell in the fire. I wanted your birthday to be special, we'll just have to make up for it another way." And when she put her hand to his cheek and smiled, he felt both happiness and relief.

They kissed and held each other and soon they both felt so much better.

* * *

It seemed the events of his birthday and his brother's talk and Hershel's talk might have helped. Daryl seemed to snap out of whatever this low was he'd been going through.

And he and Beth were looking forward to Christmas in just a few days. For them it was going to mean time off from school and more time together.

 **A/N Daryl's been having a rough go thinking about his past but he seems to have gotten through it for now. We'll see how our couple does at Christmas and the rest of their senior year in next chapter. Thanks so much for reading, please comment / review xo**

 **For the chapter image visit my tumblr at bethylmethbrick dot com, and if you enjoy reading this please check out my other Bethyl stories! Thanks!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N Thanks so much for everything. I'm loving writing this story for you and we're just getting started! It's Christmastime at the Farm.**

Christmas was just two days away and she was driving Mama and Daddy crazy. "Calm down Beth, it's not like we don't have Christmas every year." Mama was trying to get the last batch of cookies decorated and her daughter was driving her crazy.

"I know Mama but you've never invited Daryl to spend the night on Christmas Eve before!"

"Well I suppose we never thought about it before, we should have. There were many years Daryl would probably have liked having someplace to stay, other than where he was." Mama sighed remembering back to that little boy in the rag bag clothes that always seemed hungry and in need of a hug. Not that he'd give or take a hug, it had taken years before they'd reached that point with him. But he sure had looked like a little fella that could use a warm hug.

And Mama was thinking back to when it began, that first day they'd met Daryl and the journey he'd already been on in his young life. He could have chosen what might have seemed the easier path, dropped out of school, turned to drinking and drugs and not worried about a future. But Daryl had bucked the odds. He was such a hard worker and he had an eye on the future, he had goals.

And although he and Beth were still just children in Mama's eyes, there was no doubt in her mind they'd be together forever. She was happy with that; she couldn't have picked a better match for her youngest daughter.

Sure he'd gotten in his share of trouble and scrapes over the years, but he always seemed to learn from his mistakes.

"Oh Mama I can hardly wait to give Daryl his Christmas present, I hope he loves it as much as I think he will. Of course if he knew how much it cost he might get mad, but it's something he's always wanted and he deserves it."

Mama smiled at her girl, "Daryl's a person who has a little trouble accepting a gift, but he's also a person who's far more appreciative of the thought than most are."

* * *

He was just finishing cleaning up a job site and his mind wandered to Christmas and staying with Beth's family. He was plenty excited but also a little uneasy. This was going to be a new experience for him. He'd never stayed at someone's house before. Well unless you counted the few times child protective services had taken him to foster care for a night or two. His father always managed to smooth talk those CPS folks into sending him back home, so it was never for long. And those foster people had been strangers, it was different with the Greenes they meant something to him, they were a big part of his life.

Shawn and Maggie were going to be home from college and Mama told him he'd be bunking in Shawn's room, that was cool with him. Shawn had always acted like Daryl was his little brother, he'd teased him a lot but he always treated him right. And he was looking forward to hearing all of Shawn's college stories.

But what he was really looking forward to was giving Beth the present he'd bought her. He hoped it would mean as much to her as it meant to him to give it to her.

He felt sure this was going to be his best Christmas, hell if it wasn't for the Greenes he never would have had Christmases at all.

xxxx

Christmas Eve came and they were snuggled up just as close as they could get, without upsetting her Mama and Daddy. She was leading everyone in singing Christmas Carols but Daryl wasn't singing. He never had and he never planned to, but he always loved to listen to Beth.

There were popcorn balls, hot chocolate and Christmas cookies and everyone seemed so happy and loving. Contented. It always amazed Daryl that families could be like this, he wondered if he and Beth would have this kind of family together. He knew she was capable but was he? Would he know how?

But he'd made up his mind he wasn't going to think about the bad stuff anymore, he was going to be positive. And when her Mama and Daddy weren't looking he leaned in and kissed her cheek. When she smiled at him he hoped, and he tried hard to believe, that he could have this with her forever.

When bedtime came and they had that quick minute alone in the upstairs hall, he held her and kissed her, "Can't wait for mornin' Baby, gonna be fun watchin' ya be all Christmas crazy."

She playfully pushed his shoulder and laughed, "Goodnight Mister Scrooge."

5:30 Christmas morning and he was lying in bed wide awake. Shawn was quietly snoring in the other bed. The house itself was quiet, still, until the commotion started in the hallway.

She was running up and down banging on everyone's door and hollering, "Merry Christmas! Merry Christmas! Santa Claus Came! Santa Claus Came!" He was smiling to himself thinking he was right, she was Christmas crazy.

Shawn rolled over and grumbled, "Welcome to the insanity that is Beth Greene. Lucky you Daryl, lucky you." And he muttered "Shit" as he got out of bed. Daryl followed suit.

Merle and Carol had given him an early Christmas present to take with him to the Greene's, flannel sleep pants, a new t-shirt and a pair of slippers.

He and Merle had never had a Christmas growing up and he supposed they just never thought about exchanging gifts, even when they were on their own. This was the first time he'd been given any kind of gift by anyone in his family. He was a little overcome and he'd felt real bad he hadn't gotten them something.

Merle just clapped him on the back and told him, "Don't worry about it kid we didn't expect nuthin', an anyway ya can't be showin' up ta breakfast at the Greene's in yer skivvies."

He was especially grateful to have the new things when he saw Shawn was dressed similarly.

He picked up the package he had for her and opened the bedroom door. As soon as he did she grabbed him, "Merry Christmas Daryl!"

He couldn't help himself he started to laugh, "Well Merry Christmas ta you! Ya keep this up you'll be all outta energy before seven." But she just giggled, grabbed his arm and pulled him along down the stairs.

"Santa came Daryl!"

"Yeah I heard ya yellin' that 'bout five times up and down the hallway." He wasn't used to smiling so much, especially not at six in the morning.

And then he saw all the presents under the tree and it did look like Santa had come. He'd never seen anything like it, well except those trees in department stores with the fake presents. But they weren't as pretty as this, and the smell of baking and the smell of the tree, it all seemed so perfect.

Mama must have gotten up extra early because there were cinnamon rolls, coffee, juice and hot chocolate. He'd been a coffee drinker for a few years, that's what Merle drank in the morning so he drank it too, but she was having hot chocolate. He smiled, "That's just what ya need girl, sugar an caffeine." She'd giggled and it was making him happy just to see her so happy, practically bouncing.

Before they all started opening their gifts her Daddy gave a little talk about what Christmas was really about, and they all said a prayer, and it wasn't uncomfortable, he didn't mind.

Shawn had been designated as the one to hand out the gifts and as he picked up the first package he smiled at Daryl, "We had to start doing it this way, passing them out one at a time, because Beth couldn't control herself. She'd just start ripping packages open whether they were for her or not."

"Quit it Shawn I was like five."

And Maggie laughed, "Yeah or 15."

He saw his girl turn bright red and it just made her even cuter to him.

Her Mama and Daddy gave him a new pair of work boots and he was nearly speechless, "Wow this is real, real nice an I thank ya, a lot." Mama saw his neck flush and he was chewing that bottom lip and she wondered if Daryl would ever feel like he deserved to be thought of, to be cared for and loved.

He'd gotten her Daddy a new pair of leather work gloves and her Mama a fancy box of candy.

Beth handed him a large box with a big red bow on it. The package seemed almost as heavy as those boots. He looked at her questioningly and she nudged him, "Open it Daryl."

He couldn't believe what he saw; she'd gotten him a black leather jacket. It was the only article of clothing he'd ever really wanted, but damn they were expensive. "Beth, wow girl, thank you, but geez isn't this a lot? Ya shouldn't be spendin' on me like that."

They could all see how overwhelmed he was. She put her hand on his arm and spoke softly, "Daryl you work hard and you should have some of the things you want. I know you've wanted this a long time. I wanted to give it to you because of that and because I love you. Merry Christmas Daryl."

He was looking down and chewing the side of his thumb, but he nodded and slipped the coat on. He looked to her and smiled that little half grin of his. "Whaddya think?"

She was beaming him that Beth Greene smile, "I think you look too handsome, I'm going to have to take it back to the store."

He did something then he'd never done in front of her family, he gave her a kiss on the lips. He was embarrassed, he felt his neck and his ears flush pink, but he didn't regret it. He just regretted he couldn't keep kissing her.

Again his neck and ears flushed as he handed her the small package, "Merry Christmas Beth."

She opened the package, gasped and she felt her own face flush bright pink. "Daryl." It was a promise ring with a heart-shaped cluster of tiny diamonds that looked almost pink, they were surrounded by small white diamonds. The ring itself had intricate sculpted scrollwork, it was so delicate and feminine. Just like the way he always thought of her.

That's when she did something she'd never done in front of Mama and Daddy, she threw her arms around his neck and leaned into him, "Oh Daryl it's so beautiful, thank you so much. I just love it, I never expected it…"

And for once she was speechless, and that made him smile, "Merry Christmas Baby, I'm glad ya like it."

Mama and Daddy were giving each other that knowing smile. As quickly as time seemed to pass, they knew before long he'd be giving her an engagement ring.

After a light breakfast the guys all went out to do chores while Maggie and Beth helped Mama get Christmas dinner started. Merle and Carol would be by at noon to spend the rest of the day with them.

Maggie put an arm around her sister's shoulders. "That sure is a lovely ring Daryl got you Bethie. I never would have thought of him as the kind of guy to go into a jewelry store and buy such a romantic gift. I guess its official, Daryl's in love." And Maggie smiled as she watched her little sister's cheeks flush.

After the big Christmas dinner they finally got to go to the orchard together. He was wearing his new leather jacket and when he leaned her up against a peach tree, she slid her arms inside the coat and around his waist. "This is my best Christmas ever Daryl. You made it that way. I love my ring so much and I love what it means and I love you."

He put his hands to her cheeks and looked into her eyes, "The next ring I buy ya is gonna have one a them big diamonds in it an I'ma be down on one knee." He kissed her then and she was feeling so much love for him, their tongues were exploring and their want for each other was so strong. The only thing that stopped it from going further was Shawn coming by on the horse.

He laughed loudly, "What are you two lovebirds up to?" And they were so embarrassed, and also so relieved they hadn't gotten passed the kissing part yet.

xxxx

Spring was in the air and their Senior Prom was just two weeks away. She knew Daryl wasn't thrilled to go, and especially not thrilled about having to wear a tux, but he was doing a great job of pretending to be okay with it all, even acting like he was looking forward to it.

Mama had taken her to Atlanta dress shopping and although it wasn't quite the silly experience she'd had shopping with Maggie, it was good to spend a day with Mama doing something besides working on the farm.

She decided on a full length pink sleeveless gown. It was soft and feminine and she knew Daryl would like that, and it had a high neckline to keep Mama happy. She loved it and felt pretty in it and she thought it showed off her ring. Mama let her get new shoes and a cute little purse and now she was really looking forward to prom.

Prom was also an expensive night out and they were both trying so hard to save their money. Mama offered to cook them a fancy dinner so they wouldn't have to spend the money to go out. They readily agreed to that, "It don't get any better than yer cookin'." Daryl had told her Mama.

Beth almost couldn't catch her breath when Daryl came to the door, he was so handsome in his tux. He'd brought her a beautiful pink and white wrist corsage and it almost brought tears to her eyes. She was thinking it would be a lot like this on their wedding day, they'd both be all dressed up, Mama and Daddy would be there and so happy for them. She just couldn't wait to marry Daryl and she knew he wanted that as much as she did.

Mama took what seemed like a million pictures of them all dressed up before they sat down to a dinner that was nothing like what they usually ate on the farm. Mama had made something called Beef Wellington. At first Beth thought Daryl seemed reluctant to even try it, but once he had that first bite he was all smiles. He ate all of his and half of hers.

Before they left for the Prom Daddy almost said something to them about not doing anything crazy, like they tried after the last dance. But he thought better of it. They'd learned their lesson he was confident of that.

They got to the dance and immediately grouped up with Amy and Caesar and Lori and Rick.

Beth didn't miss the way that darn Andrea was checking out Daryl. Could she be more obvious? My gawd. Beth was starting to think she was going to come over and start drooling on him any minute. She held on tighter to Daryl's arm.

He didn't miss the way that asshole Shane was looking at her. It was pissing him off. He'd always been sure Shane had a bad case for her, that and the guy was nothing but a horn dog. Well he wasn't getting close to Beth. Daryl put his arm around her waist and pulled her in tight to his side.

The three couples were having a great time together, the girls were admiring each others clothes and hair and jewelry, while the guys were giving each other crap about their suits.

Then it came time to announce the Prom King and Queen and their court.

Amy and Lori were excited, positive Daryl and Beth would be crowned King and Queen. Daryl couldn't give a shit less, he didn't want the attention, didn't want to wear the stupid crown. But if it happened, and as long as she was prom queen, he'd go along. This was the big night she'd been waiting for and he wasn't going to ruin it for her.

When they announced the court the Prince and Princess were named first. She was stunned and Daryl didn't know what to do or say. Beth had been voted Princess and Shane Prince. As pissed off as Daryl was about her not being Queen, he was much more shaken by the fact that Shane was Prince. That couldn't be right.

And then Andrea was named Queen and Daryl was named King and he hated to even look at Beth, so afraid she might cry.

Lori and Amy, hell even Rick and Caesar were shocked. How could it have turned out this way?

It was expected, it was tradition that the King and Queen would be paraded around the room together, and then dance a dance, being joined halfway through by the Prince and Princess.

Daryl was steadfast. "I don't dance with no one but Beth an she don't dance with no one but me."

Then Shane laughed and said in his cocky voice, "Well this Prince is going to dance with his Princess and she's going to enjoy every one of my moves." And he laughed and he grabbed Beth around her waist hard, practically slamming her into him, she let out a yelp. He had his face up close to hers and he said, "And I think you should give me a kiss." She had her hands on his chest trying to push him away.

Daryl pulled Andrea's hands off his arm, then he pulled Shane off Beth, and as he swung him around he threw a punch that connected with Shane's jaw and Shane went down.

Daryl took Beth by the hand and said, "C'mon Baby, we're outta here."

The chaperone at the door tried to stop them, "You can't just leave it's against the rules!"

And Daryl snarled, "Fuck the rules." And he and Beth got in his truck and sped away. Now she was crying softly. "Sorry Beth, sorry I ruined your night."

"Oh no thank you Daryl, I can't believe that happened and I can't believe Shane grabbed me like that. Thank you for getting him off of me, I was afraid." He took her hand and squeezed it tightly. "I ain't ever gonna let anyone hurt ya Beth, been tellin' ya that since we was five."

They went up in the hills a ways and he pulled the truck over. He left the engine idling and cranked the radio up. He got out of the truck, went to her door and helped her out, and he smiled at her, "Can I have a dance with my Queen?" He was still wearing his crown and she smiled, nodded her head and said, "Yes my King."

And they danced out there under the stars and she told him, "If we were smart we would have just said no to the prom and gone to our spot at the creek, that would have been more fun."

He was thinking that was his idea all along but he'd never tell her that.

They eventually got back in the pickup and they kissed and fondled and they said their I love You's and they took each other to that place. And afterwards they cuddled quietly listening to the radio and just being together, until it was time to get her home.

When they were pulling into her driveway he spotted it, "Aw fuck, that's Merle's truck."

"Why is Merle here?"

"Shit I'm guessin' we're in some kinda trouble. No other reason he'd be here. Probably it's cuz a me throwing a punch at Shane an for us leavin' the dance. Oh yeah, an I cussed in front a the lady at the door."

He took her hand and they walked in, Mama, Daddy and Merle were all standing right there waiting. Daddy spoke, "What in the world went on tonight?"

As it turned out, Hershel and Merle had both been called when Daryl and Beth left the dance. Merle wouldn't have thought much about it, it didn't seem like a big deal but Hershel had called him. Merle always tried to go along with the older man for two reasons, he respected him and because Merle's first priority was to protect Daryl. Daryl wanted this life like the Greenes had so Merle wanted it for him.

Beth started to speak, "Daddy please…"

That was all she got out before Daryl took hold of her arm, "No Beth, let me tell it." And Daryl did tell the story, all of it exactly like it happened, except he didn't say "fuck" in front of her Mama and Daddy. "So then I drove the truck out in the woods a little ways and just parked. I turned up the radio real loud an we danced right there."

Merle just pursed his lips and nodded a little, waiting to see what Hershel would think of all this. For his part he thought Little Brother did just right, defended his girl and got her out of the situation, and he decked the muther fucker that had manhandled her. Merle was proud.

Daddy took a deep breath, "Well son, I understand why you reacted the way you did. Shane Walsh certainly had no business grabbing Beth that way. I'll be speaking to his father first thing in the morning. But Daryl we've talked about this before, violence is always a last resort. Perhaps it could have been settled in a more gentlemanly manner."

Yeah well Daddy didn't really know Shane but Daryl wasn't going to argue. "Yes sir Hershel, I know yer right an I'm sorry. All I could think ta do at the time was get him offa Beth and get her outta there. I shoulda stopped ta think for a minute."

"Usually we get a little more patience as we get older. It'll come Daryl. And I'm not of a mind to punish you kids for leaving the dance without permission, breaking the rules. I'd like to know where these chaperones were while this boy was grabbing my daughter and scaring her. I'll have questions for the school come Monday morning."

And as embarrassing as that sounded to Beth, her Daddy calling Mr. Walsh and the school, it sounded a lot better than her and Daryl being punished, having to be apart again. And they'd had a wonderful evening.

Daddy surprised him when he told him, "And Daryl I want to thank you for always taking good care of my daughter, protecting her."

At school on Tuesday it would come out that Shane and one of his cohorts had tampered with the ballots, that indeed it should have been Daryl and Beth who were named King and Queen. Daryl felt bad for her because all this shit meant something to her. She promised him it didn't matter she had a wonderful time with him and that was what mattered.

But the best part was someone sneaked in the school either late at night or early in the morning. They'd painted a crown on Shane's locker and written in bold red paint, "Shane Walsh Voted Prince of Douchebags."

Years later Beth would learn it was Amy.

 **A/N I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Next we have graduation and you know what comes after graduation :) Thanks so much for reading and please leave a review / comment. xo**

 **To see the chapter photo, and yes Daryl is wearing his crown, please visit my tumblr at bethylmethbrick**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N Thank you all so much - you make me smile. I know what you've been waiting for so here we go.  
**

There were just two more weeks until graduation and it was hard to say which of them was the happiest, the most excited, and the most nervous.

They knew leaving high school was the ending of what had been a huge part of their lives, their school years together. But it was also a new beginning, they'd be adults, working, paying their way and continuing to save every penny they could.

It was Saturday and he'd just gotten to her house. She and her Mama both seemed excited. "Hey y'all what's goin' on?" He asked.

"Daryl, Mama and Daddy are having a party for us right after the graduation ceremony. Everyone's coming even Shawn and Maggie will make it. Daddy called Merle and he and Carol are coming too. It's going to be so fun to celebrate with our families, and since its afternoon we won't miss our Grad Night Party!"

He nodded to her Mama and looking serious he said, "Thanks that's real nice n all. I can't even believe I'm gonna graduate, I guess they just kept passin' me along ta make room for the next guy."

When he spoke like that it worried her Mama. "Daryl you're a very bright young man and don't ever believe any different. You've worked hard for this and you've earned it."

He just shrugged and said, "Yeah okay, well thanks for giving the party. Its' gonna be a big day for me n Beth for sure."

They drove up to their little spot by the creek he stopped the truck and put his arm around her. "Damn Baby we're almost there. I can't believe I'ma graduate an I can't believe I held out this long with you. That's been the toughest part. I'ma try real hard ta make the first time special Beth. I got a plan for the night after the Grad Party. Tell yer Mama yer stayin' with Amy or sumthin', k?"

She was bright pink, "I will but what's this plan?"

His own ears were a nice shade of pink when he answered, "I ain't tellin' ya Beth. Tryin' ta make it a surprise."

* * *

They'd gone out the night before graduation and gotten home a little late but for once her Daddy hadn't scolded them. "You're both going to be tired in the morning." That was all he said. They knew he was right but they just didn't care. They craved time together. Life seemed so busy between finishing up school and working, they wanted every available minute they could get with each other.

They'd almost crossed the line again that night, but they'd made that promise to themselves and each other and as hard as it was, they'd kept it.

* * *

Graduation Day finally arrived and it was exciting for her to be feeling like she was a big deal, a center of attention as they all came into the school auditorium in their caps and gowns. Boys were on one side, girls on the other and she and Amy walked side by side. They were holding hands and smiling ear to ear. This was it, the day they'd waited for.

Beth looked to the boys' side and immediately spotted him just as he looked to her. They waved and smiled and she nearly fainted when he made kiss lips at her. Sometimes he broke right out of that shyness of his and when he did it never failed to surprise her.

Amy spotted Caesar, "Oh Beth look, Caesar's so good looking and he's really going to be handsome in his uniform." She and Beth squeezed hands, they were young, happy and in love.

Amy and Caesar had been a couple since eighth grade and like Beth and Daryl, they had a plan for after graduation. They'd be getting married in two weeks and two weeks after that Caesar would be on his way to Army boot camp.

A shy boy that none of them knew well was the class valedictorian. His name was Milton Mamet and judging by the speech he gave, he seemed to think they were all pursuing college degrees and professional careers. Daryl hoped he could stay awake until the guy was done. He just wanted to get his diploma and get the hell out of this place for good.

He was surprised to see Merle and Hershel right there by the stage when the principal handed him his diploma. They were snapping pictures and he felt self-conscious, but he managed to give them the thumbs up.

Her folks put on a real nice late afternoon lunch and her Mama had made all of his favorite foods. He still marveled at how they treated him like one of their own. Like he was special to them. It was a good feeling but it was also a little uncomfortable. It was hard enough for him to accept that Beth loved him, much less that her family accepted him and cared for him so much.

Her Mama and Daddy gave him a leather wallet with his initials on it, and inside were two one hundred dollar bills. He was surprised and appreciative, but also embarrassed. Just like her Mama had said at Christmas, Daryl had a hard time accepting gifts.

It was then Merle said, "I gotta go get yer present kid, I left it in the barn." He went in the big building and two minutes later came roaring out on his motorcycle.

Daryl was sure his brother was screwing with him. Merle couldn't possibly be giving him his Bike could he? It was a chopped '60s Triumph Bonneville TR6C, and Daryl had admired it for as long as Merle had owned it, which seemed like always.

"Serious Merle?" He looked to his brother in disbelief.

"Hell yeah I'm serious kid. I know how bad ya want a bike an I know ya got a special fondness for this one. You're the first Dixon ever ta graduate from High School, that deserves a special gift. Enjoy it kid, ya earned it." Merle clapped his brother on the back.

"But what about you ain't ya gonna miss it?"

"Well I'm sure I woulda but I'ma be gettin' myself a little newer version." Merle grinned that big old shit eatin' grin of his and Daryl just laughed. His brother could be meaner than most when the mood struck him, but he'd also come through for Daryl more times than he could remember.

Then Carol shocked him with the gift of a gleaming black Scorpion helmet. That's when all of it got overwhelming for him. His head was down and he was working the side of that thumb. Merle put an arm around his shoulders and quietly said. "Let yerself enjoy this kid, ya deserve it. Believe that."

His brother clapped him on the back, stepped away and said in his booming voice, "I got a little sumthin' for you too girl." Carol was smiling and handed her her own Scorpion Mariposa helmet. It was black with a design of bright pink scroll work and butterflies.

Beth was a little overcome herself, "Wow Merle, Carol thanks so much, this is so special. I hadn't expected anything, thank you."

Daryl still looked uncomfortable and Beth put her arm through his and got as close to him as she could. She softly whispered, "C'mon Daryl be happy for yourself you earned this moment."

Hershel and Annette had their concerns about Daryl and Beth riding around on a motorcycle, but they trusted Daryl to be careful with her. And Merle had promised he'd make him pass the motorcycle safety test at the sheriff's department before he let him ride. They still had their concerns but there was some comfort in that. And they knew they had to accept that the kids were young adults now, they were going to be spreading their wings a little.

Still her Daddy planned to talk to them both before they ever took a ride together on that bike.

xxxx

The big downtown hotel had donated use of their ball room for the Grad Night Party, and the junior class and the senior Mom's had gone all out decorating it. The big room was filled with balloons, streamers and banners. Plus enlarged photos of High School events the seniors had participated in during their past four years of school.

A D.J. had been hired, there was a big dance floor set up, and the class had been buzzing about the karaoke machine for a month.

This was intended to be a "sober party" to keep all the young grads out of trouble, while still letting them celebrate together. There was plenty of food and lots of sodas and waters and fruit drinks. But the graduates were resourceful and there were also plenty of hip flasks and mini bottles that had been smuggled in in the tops of socks, inside boots, and tucked inside shirts then and held in place with belts that were buckled extra tight. If a person thought about it for a minute they could figure out how to sneak a little alcohol in. Most everyone in the class had brought a stash.

Beth had worn a sundress with a tight waist and a full skirt. It concealed hers and Daryl's pint tucked in the top of her pantyhose. As soon as they were inside she went straight to the bathroom, put the bottle in her purse and threw the pantyhose in the trash.

Daryl wasn't usually an overly talkative guy but he couldn't wait to tell Rick and Caesar about his new Bike.

Rick punched him in the arm, "Shit all I got was a card with a hundred dollar bill in it and my old man saying, 'how soon are ya goin' ta work kid?' I wish had an older brother instead."

"Fuck Daryl, how did you rate?" Caesar chimed in, "Course even if someone had given me a Bike I s'pose they wouldn't let me take it to bootcamp, and I can't see Amy riding a chopper to the grocery store." He laughed good naturedly and they turned their attentions to their girls.

The D.J. had played two sets and everyone had been dancing and singing along. The graduates were in the mood to celebrate and the party was well underway. That's when the D.J. announced, "I think it's time we got this karaoke started!" And the group began cheering, whistling and clapping.

The first couple to take the stage was Sam and Bonnie. They were married now and the parents of two month old Randy. That hadn't prevented them from completing high school, mostly due to Bonnie's folks being real supportive allowing the couple to live with them, and taking care of little Randy while they went to school.

When the young parents began to belt out "I Got You Babe" it brought the house down in a chorus of laughter, cheering and shouting for an encore.

No one could believe it when Milton came on stage and sang Flo Rider's My House. Maybe he wasn't quite as big a nerd as they'd all thought he was, in fact a couple of the unattached girls were giving him all their attention.

Beth, Amy and Lori had just enough "sips" to feel brave and they took the stage next. They chose the theme song from Friends. They'd binged watched it together in their junior year. The three friends danced and goofed to the song just like the characters on that old show.

Daryl marveled at her bravery. He'd never be able to get up in front of a crowd and do something like that. And the amazing thing was she was having fun doing it. He would sooner die.

No sooner did he have that thought than Caesar and Rick made a valiant effort to get him to join them on stage. "Nah, y'all go on I can't be embarrassin' myself or you and especially not Beth."

While they were trying hard to talk him into it Andrea took the stage. Everyone could see by the way she stumbled up there she'd had more than a few "sips." And when she started performing "Hands to Myself," things got raunchy fast. She was gliding her hands over her breasts and the her hips, but when she lifted her skirt and rubbed her hands up her inner thighs, one of the chaperones was up on that stage and pulling Andrea off of it just that fast.

The guys were trying hard not to laugh and make remarks, the last thing they wanted was to piss off their girlfriends, hell they were trying to pretend they hadn't even noticed anything.

Amy and Beth were as red as a couple of tomatoes, but Lori had started kissing on Rick, getting maybe just a little too affectionate for public display. He was kind of confused by this sudden affection, but not enough to try and stop her. The chaperone had other ideas and was soon telling them this was not the time or place.

No one noticed the look that passed between Lori and Shane.

Daryl had only had one drink and that was when they first got there. He didn't want to have to call Merle to come for them, he wanted to take her home himself.

The party officially ended at 2am but they'd managed to sneak out at one. She had to be home at 2:30 and they wanted some time by themselves.

He drove to the woods where they'd danced when they left the prom. His arms were around her, holding her tight and he was speaking in a soft voice, "Damn Baby I can't believe we made it, well I can believe you did, but shit I graduated from High School. I just hope I can make it now, be a good man n not fuck up."

She pulled back just a little to look in his eyes, "Daryl you've been a good man for years. You take care of yourself, you finished school, you work, you take care of me. You're more grown up than most grown ups I know. Now kiss me because I have to be home in a little while."

That brought him out of it.

He walked her to the front door and whispered, "I'll pick ya up at the diner at 3:30 tomorrow, k Baby?"

She smiled and nodded her head and he gave her one last kiss goodbye.

As tired as they were from the big day and the party, they both had trouble falling asleep knowing that tomorrow night they would make another big change in their lives.

She finally fell asleep and it was noon before she woke up.

She was a nervous wreck thinking about what would happen later. She couldn't eat anything and she couldn't sit still, "Bethie I've never seen you so fidgety, what in the world has come over you?"

"I don't know Mama. I just can't relax." It was one of the few things she couldn't talk to Mama about.

"Well you're probably just wound up from your big day yesterday. Why don't you take a warm bath? That might help."

"Oh that's such a good idea Mama, that's what I'm going to do right now." Of course she was also thinking a nice warm bath was part of the perfect way to get ready for their first time.

She took her bath, shaved under her arms, shaved her legs, jumped in the shower and washed her hair, got out, plucked her eyebrows, polished her toenails and her fingernails and tried hard to straighten her hair.

She finally felt like she could eat a little something, and she sure didn't want her stomach growling right in the middle of a romantic moment with Daryl.

Mama gave her a bowl of her homemade chicken soup; that ought to do the trick. "Thank you Mama I'm sure this will make me feel better."

"Well maybe you shouldn't go to Amy's, maybe you should just stay home and rest."

She panicked then, "Oh no Mama I'll be fine I promise!"

"Alright but don't overdue tonight, get to bed early. Amy's probably as exhausted as you."

She packed her bag with all of her toiletries and make up, including that brand new nightie she'd bought and hidden, it was a little on the flimsy side. Last she put in fresh clothes for morning.

When her bag was packed she slipped into her new white lace bra and pantie set. She put on a casual skirt, a tank top that was as tight and tiny as Mama would permit, and a pair of sandals. She was ready.

"Thanks for letting me take your car Mama, I'll give you a call in the morning." And she felt just a little guilty, Mama was always so sweet.

* * *

He couldn't believe how fucking nervous he was, shit it wasn't like they hadn't done damn near everything else. But this was different this was the biggest deal of all. Once they did this they were bonded forever. They'd made that commitment to each other, they were going to be each others' first one and only one, forever.

That's what he wanted and she said she wanted it too, but he always had that little voice in the back of his mind, the one telling him he wasn't quite good enough. She deserved so much better than him, and so much more than he'd ever be able to give her. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to accept this, if she wanted him, wanted to settle for him, he'd take that. He wasn't a good enough person to walk away from her.

He got to the diner 10 minutes early, nervous as a cat and sweating bullets thinking maybe she wouldn't show. But she was right on time and she parked the car back behind the place, where no one could see it from the street, just in case her folks came to town.

He opened her car door and immediately wrapped his arms around her. "Hey Baby, ya look so pretty an damn ya smell delicious. Ya ready ta go?"

She smiled up at him and her face felt so warm she knew she was flushed, "Yes."

He put her little bag in the truck and they were on their way.

"Are you going to tell me where we're going?"

"Headin' over ta Markton."

Markton was a town just short of an hour's drive away. "Markton? We don't know anyone in Markton."

"That's kinda the point Baby. We ain't gonna see anyone we know or that knows us. I heard a guy at work talkin' 'bout a little Motel over there that has cabins on the creek, thought that might be nice for us."

When he glanced her way his neck was pink and so were the tips of his ears, she was every bit as pink as him. "Oh."

They pulled up to the small office and she waited in the truck while he went in. Ten minutes later he came walking out with a smile on his face and the key in his hand. "We got the cabin on the end."

He drove the truck the short distance to the cabin and pulled in front. It was pure rustic charm. "This is so cute Daryl."

"Well I wasn't really goin' for cute, I's goin' for romantic." He snickered over at her and she smiled back.

He helped her from the truck, opened the door to the cabin and smiled at her, "I feel like I'm s'posed ta carry ya in or sumthin'."

She spoke softly, "Well you can if you want but I think that will come after the wedding, when we have our own house."

"Well shit maybe I feel like practicin'." And he picked her up, carried her through the door, and set her down in the little overstuffed chair. She was giggling at him, "Daryl you're the most romantic man in the world and you don't even know it."

He just snorted, "Yeah well I'ma get my romantic ass back ta the truck n get the rest a the stuff."

It was one large room with a little kitchen area at one end. There was a stove so small she thought it should be in a dollhouse, an ancient compact refrigerator, and a little table with two chairs. The bathroom was small and efficient – toilet, sink, shower. The bed was big and looked comfortable enough with what looked to be a homemade quilt on top. One of the best things about it, there was a backdoor that led out to a small patio. There were two chairs and a little table there and it was right on the creek.

He had a small cooler and he smiled as he opened it. "I's thinkin' this might help us relax some." He had hard lemonade for her and beer for himself. He opened them each a drink, found her a glass in the cabinet, and they went to the patio.

"This is so pretty and peaceful, I love it here Daryl. I'm so glad you thought of this."

They didn't really talk, they just drank their drinks and stared at the creek, enjoying the peace and the beauty.

When he'd finished his beer he took a deep breath, stood from his chair and moved in front of her. He held a hand out to her and she put her hand in his. He helped her from the chair and they moved silently back inside.

He put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him, he kissed and sucked lightly on her neck. "Ya sure Baby? Sure ya ain't got no doubts, no second thoughts?"

"I'm sure Daryl. I want this with you, you're my one true love."

It choked him up to hear those words, "Yer mine too Baby, I love ya more'n anythin'."

He kissed her then and their mouths were moving together. Her lips parted and his tongue explored. His hands moved to her hair then and his kiss had even more force, more passion than usual. Her want increased knowing how much he wanted her.

His hand slid up the back of her tank top, and the feel of his rough skin rubbing her soft skin increased their desire. She mimicked his actions, sliding her hand under his shirt and softly rubbing her hand on his back. There'd been a time he'd tense when she touched those scars, but he'd grown to believe what she told him, that they didn't bother her. And her soft touch on his rough skin felt so good.

Standing there with their lower bodies as close as they could get them, and while continuing to kiss her, he moved his hand around to cup her breast. As he fondled her breast, tweaking the nipple and circling his calloused thumb along it, he again moved his mouth to her neck, licking and sucking the sensitive skin there. When she sighed with pleasure her arousal gave him confidence.

He pulled his face back enough to smile that little half smile at her as he carefully lifted the tank top off her. He smiled bigger when he saw the pretty little bra, the lace didn't hide the skin of her small breasts and taut pink nipples.

It was then he removed his own shirt and moved them both to the bed. They lay there and he kissed her for just a minute before unclasping the bra and gently tossing it aside, he moved his mouth to her breast. He used his tongue now to tease at her nipples and his lips to gently suck on them. She could feel the excitement growing in her, it was a heated mix of desire and anticipation. She'd always loved feeling his hardness pressed against her, letting her know how much he wanted her.

He slowly moved his hand up between her legs, gently running the rough tips of his fingers along the tender skin of her inner thighs, further heightening her anticipation of what was to come.

At first he touched her over the panties but when he felt how damp they were he moved to lean above her. He took her skirt off and smiled at the sight of her, laying there in just those tiny white lace panties that did nothing to conceal her blond curls.

He kissed her on the tummy and kissed her down to the top of those panties, before slipping a hand into them and sliding them off. He put his mouth on her then, kissing and sucking and licking at what he knew was her most sensitive spot. Her hands were laced through his hair and her almost humming moans were a huge turn on for him.

He only pleasured her with his mouth for a few moments, they were going beyond that today. He lay on his back just long enough to pull his own pants off, and again he leaned above her. He kissed her mouth and her neck while playing with her breast and then he slipped a finger in her. She was breathing hard and his breathing matched hers.

"Ya ready Baby? Still okay?"

"Yes, I want you." He was flooded with both love and desire at her words, he grabbed the condom and quickly slipped it on.

"That was fast," She smiled, he smiled back, "Yeah I practiced," and they both laughed softly. But just for a second because he got serious again.

He was propped on his knees between her thighs, his mouth on her breast when she felt the tip of him begin its' entrance into her. He went slowly, not rushing it, determined to not make this painful for her.

At first she was tense but she made herself breathe deeply and relax into him. When he felt that tension lessen, he entered her fully. They both felt the cherry pop and it was only mildly uncomfortable and only for a few seconds, he'd gotten her more than ready to accept him. He felt a mix of relief and intense pleasure.

He moved in her with slow and steady strokes at first, but as they both became more and more aroused he quickened his movements. She was moving her hips in unison with his and he whispered "Damn Baby ya feel so good."

"I love you."

"Love you Baby." And the friction and the movement, and the emotion of it all flooded over her and she came harder than she'd ever come. When she did there was no chance of him prolonging his own climax, it started before hers was over.

They laid there on the bed, his arm around her shoulders and her head on his chest. They were exhausted, breathing hard and amazed by what they'd done.

In that little cabin on the creek, somewhere just outside of Markton, Georgia, their lives had changed forever.

 **A/N I hope it met your expectations. The next chapter will pick up right where we've left off. Thanks so much for reading, please leave a review / comment xo**

 **To see the chapter photo visit my tumblr at bethylmethbrick dot com  
**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N Thank you so much for your comments, follows and faves, I appreciate it very much. You might need your playbook for this chapter, there's a lot going on.**

 **Please keep in mind, Daryl and Beth are both 18 so (Beth excluded), other characters are also far younger than on the show.**

They'd fallen asleep but he didn't stay asleep long. He woke to her lying there next to him, her head on his chest. He knew for a fact he was the luckiest guy around. This pretty, sweet and loving girl had given herself to him completely. And there wasn't even the slightest hint of a doubt in his mind how much he loved her. But he also had those nagging thoughts, the ones that told him he was never going to be good enough for her, that he didn't deserve this and he shouldn't have taken this step with her.

But when she seemed to be burrowing in closer to him seeking warmth, it just made him want her, need her more. She awoke to him nuzzling her neck and running his fingertips lightly on her upper arm. "Hey Baby." He had that little half grin and she thought he looked kind of nervous, "I want ya Beth, can we?"

She smiled and nodded.

He started kissing her then and his hand moved from her arm to her breast. Soon they were making love with an energy that said they hadn't just done this thirty minutes ago.

When they were again satisfied and spent he smiled at her, "Shit Baby I'm starvin'. I ain't hardly ate a thing all day I's so nervous 'bout all this."

"Me too and I didn't even think about bringing food."

"Ya wasn't s'pose ta worry 'bout that. I'ma order pizza, that way we ain't even gotta leave, sound good?"

"Perfect."

They ate their pizza in bed with the TV on low. He was drinking a beer and she was sipping on a hard lemonade. He looked at her and he seemed so serious and almost kind of sad, "I wish we could just stay here Beth, never leave this place. We'd be safe here."

She didn't understand, "Safe from what Daryl?"

"Everythin' and everyone. I could see just livin' right here in this little cabin if you was here with me. I'd never need anythin' more than this."

As good as that sounded to her, she was thinking he sounded like he might be going to that dark place of his. She tried lightening the mood. "Well you'll have to add-on a room or two, you know for Max, Wes and Anabelle."

He smiled back, but then he said, "Yeah we'll keep 'em safe here too, away from the world and people that could hurt 'em."

"Daryl there are more good people in the world than bad people."

"I know ya believe that but I don't know Baby, I ain't convinced there's many good ones left."

"Don't let yourself go there please. Don't convince yourself again that you and the world and all the people in it are bad. We're having a good time Daryl, a special time. Enjoy it."

That brought him back to her, he chewed on his bottom lip for just a minute and he nodded, "You're right Baby, this here has been perfect. Was it, ya know the love thing, was it like ya thought it was gonna be?"

She was a little embarrassed but she answered, "I knew what happens and all, but I didn't really know exactly how it would work and how it would feel, you know, with you inside me and I was a little scared. I like it Daryl, I like it with you. I can't imagine doing that with anyone else, ever."

"I can't imagine doin' it with no one but you Baby. Far as I'm concerned there ain't no one but you, you're always gonna be mine and I'm always gonna be yours." And with all of his heart that's what he wanted to believe.

They stayed up late and finished the beers and the hard lemonade, they snuggled and they talked about how perfect their lives would be in a little cabin a lot like this one. They talked about their future children, how they'd raise those children and what they wanted for them.

That's when he finally gave voice to one of the things that had been bothering him for so long. "Fuck Baby, what if I'm like my old man? I keep worryin' about that, what if I turn out like him now that I'm grown? What if I was ta start hurtin' ya an then hurtin' our babies?"

"Daryl please don't say that. If you were that way it would have showed itself by now. You've been plenty mad at me quite a few times, just like I've been mad at you, and never once have you ever raised a hand to me. I'm not worried and I don't want you to worry either. Please Daryl, please let yourself enjoy this life we're going to have."

When they woke in the morning he reached for her once more and she didn't turn him away, as long as they'd waited for this, played around the edges of it, they weren't going to pass up an opportunity.

She called her Mama and told her she'd be home sometime after lunch, that she and Amy were going to listen to some music for a while, then have lunch out. Mama didn't question it at all, and again Beth felt a little guilty for lying, but not enough that she wished she hadn't, or that things hadn't happened the way they did. She was happy to have taken this step with Daryl. She knew she'd never have any regrets about it.

At first they just joked about taking a shower together, and then they looked in one another's eyes, smiled and got in that small space together. It was a pretty tight squeeze but they weren't bothered by that one bit. They decided when they got married their house was going to have a nice big shower.

When he couldn't put it off any longer, when they had to leave, he felt a kind of deep sadness, almost a sense of dread. He didn't want to leave this place, this little cabin. He really did wish they could just stay right there, forever. Life would be good then, he knew it would.

They drove back to town with her sitting just as close to him as she could get. She sang along with the radio, ran her hand randomly along his thigh, and every once in a while she'd lean up and kiss his cheek or teasingly stick her tongue in his ear and laugh. Daryl was as happy as he ever allowed himself to be.

In spite of all his self-doubt and all his fears, he knew he loved Beth and that as long as they were together he could be happy. She kept him even, kept him on track.

He parked behind the diner, right next to her Mama's car. He quickly put her things in the backseat, and they went inside for lunch. They were so hungry their stomachs were rumbling. He had two double cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings and a chocolate milkshake. She had soup, salad and a grilled cheese.

He whispered, "Damn girl ya used up all my energy an all the calories I was storin' away. I don't think I'm ever gonna get full again."

She smiled and whispered back, "Yeah well don't you go blaming me Daryl Dixon I think I lost five pounds thanks to you!"

They shared a kiss out behind the little diner and found it difficult to separate, but they knew they had to and that they both needed to get home. "I'ma take a nap an do what I gotta do, then I'll text ya n see if we can go for a ride after while or sumthin'. Damn I don't wanna leave ya Baby. Love ya Beth."

"I love you too, and Daryl I'm always going to love you, I promise."

xxxx

Just twelve days later they attended Amy and Caesar's wedding. The ceremony was held in the small church Amy's family attended. Afterward her Mama and Daddy gave an outdoor reception in their yard.

The day was beautiful, not too unbearably hot. There were canopies and lots of shade trees and that helped keep things pleasant. Everything was decorated in shades of pale green and lavender, Amy's favorite colors. She looked so pretty in a simple tea length dress, and Caesar was a handsome groom in a dark tan suit and white shirt, and he was so in love with Amy he wore a lavender tie, just for her.

Caesar's Dad and his brother Javier had built a small dance floor, and Javier was the D.J. The mood was fun and celebratory just as it should be, but it was tinged with just a little bit of melancholy. Caesar would be leaving for boot camp in two short weeks.

They were hoping after boot camp he'd be stationed right here in Georgia. Amy's Daddy had a friend, a training officer stationed at Fort Benning, who was a higher up at The Maneuver Center. In an effort to keep Caesar close to home he'd put in a request for the young man to train under him, after he completed his basic training.

If it all worked out Amy and Caesar would be living in military housing at Fort Benning, only a couple hour's drive away. That's what the newlyweds hoped for. Beth hoped for it too so she could still be close to her friend.

After a two night honeymoon in Atlanta, they'd come back and stay with Amy's folks. Amy would continue living with them until Caesar got a post.

Her Daddy's Army friend attended the wedding. He was a big muscled looking man, older, maybe in his early thirties. He had a shock of red hair and the sort of presence that made it seem as though he was "in command" of the scene.

Beth noticed the man's eyes following her everywhere. It wasn't like he was leering, or being creepy or threatening in any way, it reminded her of that expression people use, "he couldn't take his eyes off her." Even though she had no interest in the big man, she found it flattering.

It was apparent Daryl hadn't missed it either, and what Beth noticed was that Daryl was practically glued to her. He either had his arm around her, or he was holding her hand constantly. When they danced he held her so close she was almost embarrassed in front of Amy's and Caesar's folks, but she didn't complain, she liked this attention from Daryl, and this little bit of jealousy. He even did something he never did in public situations, he kissed her, three different times.

Still it seemed the soldiers' eyes never left her. At one point Daryl had to leave her long enough to use the bathroom, he'd had two beers and nature was definitely calling. As soon as he went in the house the big soldier walked over to her. "Good afternoon Miss my name's Abraham Ford, I've been wanting to say hello to you."

She was surprised by how softly and quietly he spoke, she'd heard him talking to others at the party and it seemed he had a voice as commanding as his presence. "Hello Abraham I'm Beth Greene, Amy is my best friend."

"How nice. When Amy and Caesar get stationed at Benning, and I'm confident they will, I hope you'll be down for a visit. I'd be happy to give you a tour of the base."

"That sounds very nice. Thank you." And suddenly Daryl was there with his arm around her waist, and she swore he about crushed her he pulled her so close to him.

He thrust a hand out to the soldier, "Name's Daryl Dixon, I'm with Beth and she's with me." Abraham Ford just smiled, shook Daryl's hand and said, "Well you're a lucky man Daryl Dixon." Then he nodded his head once to her, "Miss." And he walked back toward Amy's Daddy.

"Shit, I knew the minute I left ya he'd be on ya. He wasn't makin' no moves was he Beth?"

"No Daryl, not at all. He just introduced himself that was it." There was no way she was telling Daryl about the offer of a tour. Even though she did kind of get turned on by Daryl being a little jealous, she wasn't going to let anything escalate.

As the young couple meandered around sipping on their drinks they saw something so disturbing they both gasped. Shane and Lori were behind the garden shed. They were kissing like they meant to do a whole lot more, and Shane was lifting the hem of her skirt and getting awfully personal.

Beth and Daryl were shocked, Lori and Rick were supposed to be getting married next summer as soon as he completed his police officer's training program.

Daryl was chewing that lip when he asked her, "Shit am I s'pose ta tell Rick? I don't know what the hell ta do or say."

"I don't either. Why don't I call Lori tomorrow and see what she has to say about this, we'll think more about what to do then."

As it turned out, they didn't have to worry about it. Rick got off work early and came by to help celebrate the newlyweds. He saw it with his own eyes.

Rick didn't want to cause a scene, ruin Amy and Caesar's wedding party. So he just took a deep breath and calmly walked over to the couple, held out an open palm to her and said, "Give me back my ring." Then he looked to Shane, "You and me buddy, count on it."

Daryl was in awe of his friend; he would never have been able to act that cool. But Rick could be like that, calm and cool on the outside even when that fire was burning in his gut. Shane's eyes were shooting darts at Rick, and Lori was crying like someone had broken her heart, instead of like she'd just tromped on Rick's.

Thankfully everyone else seemed to have missed the entire exchange.

Except the big redheaded soldier. He hadn't missed a thing because his eyes still hadn't left Beth.

xxxx

By midsummer they were exhausted from the hours they were working and from trying to find time to just to be together. It put a strain on them both, not on their relationship exactly, it was more that they felt pressured. Pressured to work hard, pressured to save money, pressured to find alone time and even pressured to try and find the time to sleep.

He was back to working 6:30a – 6:00p Monday through Saturday. The hours were long but he was glad to have the work. The boss had decided roofing was Daryl's best skill. He helped out with the other work as needed, but he was primarily being trained in roofing. He could already imagine someday owning his own roofing company.

With his crazy hours she'd taken on extra work. She was back full time at the day care and back to taking care of the infants, which she loved.

She did that Monday through Friday 7:00am – 5:30pm. But she'd also taken a Saturday morning job, working the counter at the dry cleaners. Who knew Saturday morning was when people liked to drop off and pick up their cleaning? The pay wasn't great but the work wasn't hard and it was that little bit extra. Plus Daryl was working anyway so she thought she may as well do something.

And then there was Amy. When she wasn't working, or with Daryl, or trying to get a few hours of sleep, she was spending her time with Amy. Her friend would be leaving before long, when Caesar got stationed somewhere for training or schooling or whatever happened next. Mostly it was all afternoon on Saturdays, before Beth had to get ready for her regular Saturday date night with Daryl. She and Amy would go to lunch, or go to a movie, or just hang out at Amy's and talk about Caesar and Daryl and what all their high school friends were up to now, especially Lori and Shane.

They'd gone public with their relationship. Amy had heard that Lori's Mama and Daddy were so mad they were spitting nails, they'd always thought Rick was a great catch and they genuinely liked him. But Shane? Well there wasn't anyone in town that didn't know about his reputation with girls.

Everyone felt sure that someday Lori would deeply regret giving up a great guy like Rick Grimes, especially for a ladies man like Shane Walsh.

For his part Rick was sticking with his training program and his part time job, and staying away from women altogether.

xxxx

The young couple was anxiously waiting for July 4th weekend. They both had three days off this year and they planned to spend the majority of that time at their special spot by the creek. Daryl had splurged on a two person tent that he was going to set up and leave for the weekend.

They were hosting a big 4th of July party, the only guests were going to be the two of them. They'd spend the weekend listening to music, cooking out, swimming, fishing and Daryl was bringing his crossbow.

Mostly they just wanted to relax and have the time to be together, alone. Of course she was still living at home, and there were still her parent's rules for as long as she continued to live with them. But there was a big stretch of day and night before she had to be home at midnight.

That first morning she drove to "their" spot in Mama's car, loaded down with a cooler full of hot dogs, macaroni and potato salads, and big chunks of watermelon. There was also a pan of brownies just for Daryl, a huge bag of potato chips and one of Doritos. She had her Ipod and her Pill, the blanket and the beach chairs.

He was there waiting. He had the tent set up with the sleeping bag laying spread open inside. He'd built the fire ring and he had wood stacked nearby. He had a cooler too, full of cokes and just one six pack of beer and one of hard lemonade.

He got everything out of her car and organized, and then he took her in his arms. "Damn girl I just miss ya so much. I'm always thinkin' 'bout that little cabin where we stayed, wishin' we could be there together."

"I know me too. At least we have our creek here and it's almost the same as there. And someday Daryl, someday we'll have a little cabin on a creek."

"Really Beth? Would ya really want that, ya wouldn't be disappointed ta not live in town, or in some bigger city?"

"Daryl I'm a farm girl, remember? I can't think of anything better than living in a cabin by a creek with you, Max, Wes and Anabelle."

He snorted then. "Yeah, them kids are gonna have ta go right ta work cuz I'ma be sittin' around on the porch, drinkin' beer an eatin' brownies all day."

Suddenly he took hold of her, wrapped her in his arms and kissed her hard and deep, "I want ya, I need ya Baby, I been needin' ya." And with that they crawled into the small tent.

* * *

"Did ya bring your swimmin' suit?"

"Well of course I did, I can't just keep losing shirts you know!" They laughed and then he shrugged a shoulder at her, flushed a little red and said, "Maybe we don't need swimsuits."

"Daryl Dixon you devil you!" She laughed and yelled, "Last one in is a rotten egg!" And they were stripped down and running naked into that water, laughing and grabbing and enjoying being 18 years old, alone at their creek making love and skinny dipping.

When she had to go home he figured he might as well too. "I'll pick ya up in the mornin' at eight, K?"

She smiled, nodded and he gave her one more deep kiss before they went their separate ways.

* * *

When he got home Merle and Carol were waiting for him. Damn it was midnight what the hell could be wrong? "Hey Little Brother have a seat, we need ta talk."

"Shit ya got me scared, can I get a beer?"

"Yeah sure kid."

He came back with the beer and his brother spoke, "It ain't nuthin' bad kid, it's just that things are changin'. Yer takin' next Friday afternoon an all day Saturday off work, I already squared it with the boss an we're cool. Friday yer meetin' Carol an me at the courthouse an me an her are gettin' married. Saturday you an me are movin' our stuff ta her house, it's bigger. You'll still have yer own room n all, an it ain't no further for ya ta get ta work or Blondie's place."

"Well shit I thought y'all was gonna tell me someone died or sumthin'. Congratulations Merle, an I'm sorry for ya Carol." And he snorted out a laugh.

"Yeah well that ain't all of it kid."

"What?"

"Seems yer Big Brother didn't practice what he preaches. Yer gonna be an uncle in 'bout six months."

Daryl could swear he felt his mouth fall open, wide. It wasn't like Merle was too old or anything, shit he was only 12 years older than Daryl, he'd just turned 30. It's just that it was something Daryl would have never expected, his big brother bein' someone's Daddy.

And his mind was working. "Well y'all ain't gonna want me livin' there, you're gonna be a family an all. Don't need a kid brother hangin' around. I'll look for a place on my own."

That's when Carol spoke, "No Daryl we want you with us. You _are_ family and an important part of our lives. I want you to be a big part of the baby's life. Please. We love you."

She shocked Daryl when she spoke those words to him. He couldn't think of what to say, so he just nodded and said, "Thanks."

Merle stood then, put an arm around his brother's shoulders and got serious with him, "Don't go there kid, don't get all in yer head and go dark on me. Ya know ya mean the world ta me, I don't want ya off on yer own, I want ya with me." Daryl just nodded and chewed the side of that thumb.

* * *

He told her about Merle and Carol the next day at camp. "I think it's wonderful Daryl your brother's in love, that doesn't mean he doesn't love you too. We're in love but you live with Merle and you love him. And Carol's so nice and she's been good to us, and Daryl there's going to be a baby! Now that's exciting."

She always did have that way of making him feel better about things.

* * *

As soon as Mama and Daddy got wind of the impending marriage they insisted on having a little family celebration Friday evening.

Friday afternoon Beth managed to get someone to cover for her at the day care, long enough so she could slip out and attend the brief ceremony. Daryl, still in his work clothes, stood with Merle and it seemed Carol hadn't even thought about asking someone so Beth stood with her.

Merle and Carol both seemed happy when the judge was done and they were married. She'd never seen Merle smile so big. After he'd kissed his bride he shook Daryl's hand and said, "See kid, ya got a sister now. It's all gonna be good, I promise ya Baby Brother. Anyway, I s'pose you n Blondie here will be the next ta take the plunge."

Then he kissed Beth on the cheek, "Thanks for comin' girl, see ya later at yer folks."

Mama put on a real nice dinner for the newlyweds, she'd even made a small wedding cake. Everyone seemed happy and even Daryl smiled.

Saturday, as soon as she got off work, she went to Carol's. She was going to offer to help with the unpacking, but she was also anxious to see where Daryl would be living.

It was a cute little cottage style home, old but perfectly maintained. She was helping Carol rearrange things in the kitchen cabinets. Carol reached for something in a high cabinet, her shirt rose up and that's when Beth saw the scarring on her back, not unlike Daryl's. She was shocked and sad, but she'd never let on she'd seen it and she'd never ask about it. Maybe someday she'd hear the story.

They were in his new room. "This is nice Daryl and the house is so cute. You'll see, you'll be happy here."

He was chewing that bottom lip, "Yeah okay, it's just I ain't ever really felt like I have a home Beth, like I really belong somewhere. Not a house or an apartment, but a home. Ya know what I mean? Where I feel like it's home. I know Merle's been good ta me, an your folks an all. And I'm happy for Merle an Carol, I am. I just wish you an me could get married real soon, get us our own place, a home, an we'd never move again."

"We will Daryl, we will soon. We're doing so good with our savings, we're almost there."

 **A/N Lots happened for our couple, and not just in their own lives but also the lives of those around them. Next chapter we have a time jump. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'd very much appreciate hearing your comments and reviews. Thanks so much xo**

 **To see the chapter photo please visit my tumblr blog bethylmethbrick See you next Thursday!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N Thanks so much! In this chapter we're going to move ahead three years but we'll reach back and see how things progressed to this point. This chapter is another packed one. As you're reading keep in mind, most everything happens for a reason.  
**

 _Three Years Later_

Fall and winter was their favorite time. Daryl wasn't working so many hours, he seldom had overtime during the week and the crew almost never worked a Saturday. The couple had a normal schedule. She'd long ago quit her extra job at the cleaners, it had just been too much with everything else they had going on. And during these times when his workload lightened they wanted to have the same days off.

So many things had happened, had changed, had moved forward.

Amy was still her best friend and happily Amy and Caesar had been stationed at Fort Benning. She and Daryl had been down there a few times to spend the weekend with their friends. Even though she'd like to visit more often and just hang out with Amy, Beth didn't go to Amy and Caesar's without Daryl. She knew he didn't want her there without him and she knew why.

Whys name was Abraham Ford.

It wasn't that the big man had tried anything, or even suggested anything, or ever done anything out of line. It was just that with all his strategical command training and his face that could go expressionless, there wasn't anyone who'd seen him around Beth that didn't know the man was completely and hopelessly taken with her.

The first time, and every time, she and Daryl had traveled to Benning the man had rolled out the red carpet. He'd been cordial, respectful and even friendly with Daryl, there was no question about that. But Daryl knew the big man wanted what Daryl had. He could practically feel the other man's want for Beth coming off of him.

That first visit Abraham had taken both of the young couples on a full "insiders" tour of the huge military base. It had been an incredible look at how the Army itself operated, and how the Army did business in Georgia. It was a world unto itself. They'd appreciated it, but Daryl was uneasy having Beth around Ford.

The next time they were down for a visit he'd had everyone over for a cook-out, and he hadn't gone on the cheap. He'd grilled them rib eye steaks served with all the trimmings, including imported micro-brews and high end wine. His home was very nice, definitely much nicer living quarters than what Caesar and Amy had. Of course Abraham was a ranking officer.

Again, he'd been friendly and cordial with Daryl, and he hadn't done or said one thing even remotely out of line. But they all knew. It made Daryl uncomfortable and Beth was completely understanding of that. Had some woman so obviously had feelings for Daryl she would not have wanted to hang around with them either.

She and Daryl were both grateful that Amy and Caesar came home at least once a month to see their folks. They could still spend time with them but in a more comfortable environment.

* * *

And there was another huge change. It started on a Saturday afternoon, it was about three months after Amy and Caesar's wedding. Daryl and Rick had been in the woods, close to town near the high school. Rick had set some rabbit snares and they were checking to see if he'd gotten lucky. And then they stumbled on it, Shane with his head right up some girl's skirt. She just laughed when she saw Daryl and Rick approach. Nice girl.

Rick called Shane out just like he said he would, "Hey asshole does Lori know you're fucking around with someone else?"

And the fight was on. It seemed pretty even so Daryl stayed out of it. He'd jump in if he felt Rick needed backup, but otherwise this was Rick's fight and Daryl knew he wanted it, he'd been wanting to beat on Shane ever since the wedding. And shit, Shane had it coming.

In the end it really was a pretty even match up, except Shane ended up with two black eyes while Rick was just sporting the one.

That night when Daryl and Beth had their date he told her all about it, and of course she texted Amy, and of course Amy called Lori. Lori called Rick and begged him to take her back. Rick had no intention of ever taking her back but that didn't mean he wouldn't screw her. After all, he was every bit as pissed off at her as he had been with Shane, yeah probably more.

Lori got pregnant. Rick's Dad insisted on a paternity test. The test showed the child was indeed Rick's. Lori told him not to worry, she didn't want the baby anyway she'd just give it up for adoption. Rick talked to his Mom and Dad, he didn't want to give up his child and it turned out his parents didn't want that either. The plan went into motion. Rick's parents would take care of the child while Rick worked. He was just about to start as the rookie in the sheriff's department, working midnights.

Rick was the first in their group of friends to become a parent and Carl was a very popular addition to the gang.

xxxx

Beth still lived with her Mama and Daddy but things had changed in her relationship with them. They knew at 21 years old she was an adult. They no longer forced her to keep a curfew, and she suspected they suspected she and Daryl had an intimate relationship. Still it wasn't something either she or Daryl wanted to throw in their faces, so they continued to keep reasonable hours and respect her Mama and Daddy's slightly different beliefs and ways of doing things.

Daryl was still living with Merle, Carol and little Jonah. He was crazy about the little guy and the feeling was mutual, often he and Beth would babysit so Merle and Carol could get out for a couple of hours, go to dinner or just take a ride on the Bike.

Merle and Carol didn't impose rules on him, and he did his part around the place. Keeping his room picked up, not leaving messes, doing his share of dishes, watching Jonah and helping out in the yard. He knew how damn lucky he was, Carol absolutely refused rent and they included him in their meals. That saved him a lot of cash every month.

He was now a journeyman roofer and making good money. He had more than enough set aside for the down payment on a nice place. He and Beth were debating whether to buy a move-in-ready home or build their own.

Although she didn't make near the money he did, she was frugal with no big expenses and had plenty stashed away for furnishings and incidentals.

He hadn't said a thing to her but Daryl had a plan. They'd gone to Savannah one weekend and she'd seen a vintage wedding / engagement ring set in a little shop. He could see how much she loved it. While she tried on sundresses in another store, he'd rushed back and bought it. He had it stashed away on the top shelf of his closet.

* * *

And then there was that day Daryl kind of came apart.

Merle was sitting in his chair reading the paper, Daryl was on the couch half watching a hunting program before leaving to see Beth. Carol was tending to Jonah. She was wearing one of those box cut t-shirts, the kind that sits just below the waist. She bent over to pick Jonah up from his playpen, Daryl glanced over at her, Carol's shirt had risen up just enough that he saw the scarring.

He jumped from the couch, "What the fuck Merle?!" He charged towards his brother with blood in his eye. "What did ya do ta her?!"

Merle followed his instincts, not sure at first what was going on but ready to defend himself, he jumped from the chair and grabbed at his charging brother. Carol shrieked, Jonah started to cry. "What the fuck ya doin' Merle, beatin' on your wife?!" Daryl was blindly throwing punches.

Carol called out, "No Daryl please!" Merle held him off, grabbed him from behind and locked his arms around Daryl's arms. "Calm down kid, let us talk to ya about it. Take a breath for Christ sake."

Carol put the baby back down in the playpen and tentatively walked toward Daryl, "It wasn't Merle, Daryl, it wasn't him I promise. Try to calm down and I'll explain."

He was shaking, pumped full of adrenaline. Merle loosened his hold, but still kept his arms firmly locked around his brother because it seemed he might shake apart.

Carol told him about her ex, some asshole named Ed. He'd beat her on the regular over the five years they'd been together. But the worst was when she'd been pregnant. He'd beaten her so badly she lost the baby. He was in prison now. While she spoke Merle continued to keep hold of his brother.

Daryl had barely heard her words and he was still shaking. He'd seen those scars and he'd had a flashback to one of his own beatings. He'd dropped a plate and it shattered, his Dad had called him a clumsy, destructive, worthless little asshole. He'd taken his belt off and taken it to Daryl's back. He could still feel the pain, he could see himself there crying, and his Dad beat him harder because he cried, telling him he was a pussy and he'd better toughen his sissy ass up. He was six years old.

Merle just kept telling him over and over, "Its' okay Little Brother, it's okay." He finally seemed to be back with them, to be calming down, but he was emotional. Merle loosened his hold more and when he did, Daryl's shoulders slumped, and then tears started falling. Carol brushed his hair back, placed a hand on his cheek, she kissed his forehead, "It's okay Daryl."

But Merle was worried for his brother. He didn't think it was okay, hell he wasn't sure it was ever going to be okay. "Ya stay in tonight, don't want you n Blondie out on that Bike. We'll have her here, order up a pizza or sumthin', but yeah kid ya ain't leavin' here like this."

Daryl just nodded and went to his room. Merle looked to Carol, then stepped out on the back porch and called Beth. He didn't gloss it over, didn't try to make it sound like no big deal. The girl was in love with Little Brother, they'd probably end up married sometime soon. She needed to know.

When she hung up the phone she cried, worried for Daryl, heartbroken for him. And she wanted to do her crying now, because she needed to be there for him, be strong.

She got to Carol and Merle's and Merle told her, "He's in his room, been in there since things calmed down."

She just nodded and walked to his door, knocked once and went in. He was laying on the bed and his back was to her. She quietly shut the door, went to the bed and lay down next to him. She didn't say anything, she just put her arm around him and laid her head up against his back. He didn't speak either he just took her hand and held it tightly to his chest.

Things seemed to have gotten better almost as quickly as they'd gone bad, but the next day Merle had talked to his brother. "Kid I think ya need ta maybe think about talkin' ta someone, some kinda professional. I don't like ta see ya goin' through this. Maybe ya need just a little help dealin'."

Daryl hadn't reacted well to the suggestion, "Fuck you Merle, I can take care a myself, I don't need nobody."

"Yeah well Kid your history says different. Keep an open mind about gettin' help, that's all I'ma say."

xxxx

He had the ring, he had the money for the house, and he knew that he loved her with every part of himself. The time had come.

Rick told him he should talk to her Daddy first, get his blessing. Daryl was always glad to have Rick's counsel on these things because he had no idea what in the hell was the proper way to do stuff.

So after Sunday dinner he asked her Daddy if he could speak to him privately. Mama and Daddy exchanged a knowing glance and Daddy said, "Sure Son let's step in my office."

He'd known the man almost his entire life but he couldn't recall ever having been this nervous around him. Not even after that time Beth had lost her shirt. He just dove right in, "Hershel ya know I love Beth, an I know ya know I been wantin' ta marry her since we was just kids. I got a good job now an a good bit a money saved ta put on a house, an I wanna ask her if she'll marry me. I promise ya I'ma always love her an I ain't ever gonna hurt her. I'm askin' for your blessin'."

The older man nodded and put his hand out to shake, "Son I've been expecting this since you two were in kindergarten. You've grown from a good boy into a good man and I know my daughter loves you, and I know you love her. You have my blessing."

"Okay, thanks. If ya don't mind I'd like ta take her for a ride now an ask her while I still got my courage goin'."

"That sounds like a very good idea Daryl." And Hershel Greene did something he'd never done, he gave Daryl a quick hug.

She was helping her Mama clean up the dishes from Sunday dinner when he walked in the kitchen. "Beth um, when you're done I'd like ta take ya for a ride, I need ta show ya sumthin'."

Mama quickly said, "Go on ahead Bethie, this is all but done anyway. You two have a nice time."

He drove her to their spot by the creek. She was smiling when she asked him, "What are we doing here on a Sunday afternoon?"

"I got sumthin' I wanna talk to ya about Beth. C'mon I got the blanket, let's sit down by the creek."

She was dying to know just what this something was he wanted to talk about.

He laid the blanket out on the ground, but he stopped her as she made to sit down on it, "Wait. Just stand there a minute." Now she was really puzzled.

He put his hand in his pocket, dropped to his right knee, and took a small box from that pocket. Now she was 99% sure she knew what he wanted to talk about and she was already on the verge of tears, but with a huge smile on her face.

"I been in love with ya since kindergarten Beth, an I started ta realize by second grade I wanted ta marry ya just as soon as I could. I'ma always love ya Beth, always gonna want ya with me. I promise ya I ain't ever gonna hurt ya, and I ain't ever gonna love no one else. Will ya marry me?" He held out the engagement ring.

She'd started crying those happy tears by then, "Yes Daryl, oh my God yes and I can't believe it, you got the ring I loved!" He slipped the ring on her finger and then she was on her knees, her arms wrapped around his neck. And they both had tears.

"Damn Baby I can't believe it, finally. We're finally gonna do this."

xxxx

They wasted no time setting the date, just three months away. Beth was ready and anxious to start the planning. He had his arm around her shoulders, "Baby ya know I don't know shit about any a this stuff I just want whatever ya want. Only thing is, do ya think your folks will let us have beer an stuff? Our friends are gonna wanna have a beer. "

"Yes I'll talk to them, I'm sure they'll be okay with it, Daddy's drinking days are long behind him."

For the real planning and real help with ideas she consulted Mama and Amy. Amy came to town and stayed for two weeks. Caesar was deployed and she was happy to be busy, especially doing something fun like helping to plan her best friends' wedding.

Beth wanted to have the ceremony itself at her church, she'd been going there her whole life, she knew the preacher and she couldn't think of a more perfect setting. And speaking of perfect settings, the farm would be the perfect venue for the reception. It had the big grassy yard area, beautiful flowers and shade trees, and the charm of the big white house and porch in the background.

Mama and Daddy said yes immediately and Daddy even agreed to the alcohol. His only request was they serve beer and wine only, no hard liquor. He wanted Merle and Rick to haul off whatever was left over first thing the morning after the wedding. It was agreed.

She and Amy had so much fun deciding on decorations. Beth knew the colors she wanted, she'd known for years. She loved lavender just like Amy, but she wanted pink along with it and just a touch of yellow. Except for tablecloths and napkins, those must be white.

She and Amy were going to put the centerpieces together themselves, flameless white candles surrounded by rings of lavender and pink flowers. They'd use artificial flowers for those so they could have them done way in advance.

Besides family Beth just wanted hers and Daryl's closest friends, Rick and a date if he wanted, and Amy and Caesar. Lori had left town and someone said she'd moved somewhere either in or near Columbus, close to Fort Benning. But it seemed she wanted to lose contact with everyone because no one had heard from her and no one knew exactly where she was.

Mama and Daddy had several neighbors and friends from church they planned to invite, and of course Maggie would be there with her husband Glenn, and Shawn was coming with his fiancé Linda.

The couple had talked about it and decided they weren't going to have a flower girl, they didn't even know a little girl the right age, and they weren't going to have a ring bearer, Jonah and Carl were both too little anyway, and they'd each have just one attendant, a maid of honor and a best man. Daryl knew his would be Merle.

Caesar's brother Javier had done such a great job at Caesar and Amy's wedding, they asked him if he'd D.J. for them and he agreed. All he wanted was two cases of beer for payment.

Maggie's husband had been doing photography for years and he'd be taking the pictures. Perfect.

Mama's best friend Patricia, and Amy's Mom had volunteered to prepare the food. They were again sticking to the simple things. Country ham, beans, greens, and a variety of salads, rolls and cornbread.

Mama insisted no one was making the wedding cake but her, and no one argued.

They'd found a house they were set on, it was perfect, secluded but close in. The people that owned it didn't want to hassle with the sale until after their son left for college, which wasn't until six weeks after the wedding. They'd decided it was worth waiting for and they'd just bite the bullet, stay with her Mama and Daddy for as long as it took.

The second Saturday after the proposal Mama, Beth and Amy drove to Atlanta. They had a lot of shopping to do and they wanted to get there as soon as the stores opened.

It didn't take Beth long to spot it, the perfect dress. She loved it and she knew Daryl would too. It was a simple ankle length style, soft and feminine. The scoop neckline left everything to the imagination and she knew Daryl didn't care for her wearing anything "revealing." The capped sleeves would accent her toned arms. The dress fit snug at the waist but had a soft drape. No big skirt, no train, it would just move along with her. It was beautiful in it's simplicity and everything she wanted. She didn't want a veil, just some flowers in her hair.

She got low-heeled white sandals to go with her dress, something she'd be able to dance in and not worry about falling on her butt at her own wedding.

"Oh Mama, Amy it's perfect I'm so happy!"

She had talked to Maggie early on, and since her sister was now living in Michigan with her husband, she had no problem at all with Amy being Beth's maid of honor. "Please ask her Beth, it would be perfect. With Glenn's business we're not going to be able to get there until late Thursday night, there won't be time for shopping and fittings. And I'm always going to be your sister that's enough of an honor for me."

Now to shop for Amy's dress, Beth was hoping to find something in the right colors, and again they lucked out. A pretty sundress that hit just below the knee, and the best part was it was floral pattern of lavender and pink on a white background.

Mama chose a pale pink dress with a matching jacket and she told her daughter, "I can pin a lavender and white corsage on the jacket, it will be perfect."

Amy and Mama went for simple shoes just as Beth had, spiked heels were not designed for walking around on the farm.

From there it was off to the huge craft warehouse where they got the candles, artificial flowers, ribbon, little dishes for putting out nuts and candies on the tables, paper bells, and a little bride and groom for the cake. "I wish they had a groom in a black leather jacket then I'd have my perfect tiny Daryl." And the three women all laughed at the image.

Mama dropped Amy off at her folks' on the way home, and she and Beth didn't get home until almost 6:30. Daryl would be by at seven.

Beth rushed in with her things, changed into jeans and boots and grabbed her helmet. She was so ready to ride on the back of that Bike, arms wrapped around her soon-to-be husband.

The bell rang promptly at seven, she could never remember him ever being even a few minutes late. She rushed to open the door, "Hey Baby ya look real pretty tonight, did ya have a good day?"

Every time she saw him she swore she loved him more, and him leaning there against the door jamb dressed in his leather jacket, snug jeans and motorcycle boots, he was the definition of hot. "Yes and I can't wait to tell you all about!" She called a "goodbye" to Mama and Daddy, they got on that Bike and rode.

They loved to just ride around kind of aimlessly, feeling the wind on them and enjoying the sense of freedom that a person always got on a motorcycle. They stayed on that rural two lane for nearly an hour and then he headed toward their spot. He got as close as he could, as far as where the blacktop ended, and they walked the short distance to the creek.

He had the blanket rolled and under his arm and he spread it out when they got next to the creek.

"So tell me what ya did today Baby." He knew she'd be dying to tell him all about it, and he also knew there were a lot of details she wouldn't be sharing, like what her dress looked like. The thing about him and Beth though was they knew each other, they got each other, she'd know what kind of dress he would or wouldn't like. And besides, he was looking forward to being her husband so much he didn't care if she showed up in coveralls.

"Sounds like a big day Beth, an it sounds like ya got a lot done an I know ya had fun, I can tell by how damn giddy ya are."

She laughed at that, "You're right I am feeling pretty darn giddy Mister Dixon. So what did you do today?"

"Me an Rick went huntin' this mornin', just for rabbit an squirrel, mostly it was good just gettin' out an walkin' 'round in the woods. He got a couple rabbits an I got a couple an I also got a couple squirrels. Carol's gonna cook 'em up Monday. Yer invited if ya wanna come."

"Oh I'd love to!"

And they were soon kissing and talking more about their plans. Things were coming together and they were filled with excitement and anticipation.

They'd missed each other this past week, missed each others bodies, they made love on that blanket out under the stars.

Everything was so perfect, their lives were on track and they were looking forward to being married and starting their lives together.

xxxx

They didn't see each other the Friday night before the Saturday wedding. She was having dinner with her family, her parents, Maggie and Glenn, and Shawn and Linda. He'd told her he had someone he had to go see.

The wedding was set for noon and she was so excited. She, Amy, Maggie and Linda had gone to the church early and decorated with flowers and ribbons, an aisle runner, and set up a little table for people to sign the guest book. Linda would be in charge of that. Everything looked wonderful, just like she'd had it in her mind's eye.

They went back to the farm and Amy and Maggie helped her with her hair and makeup, and she felt beautiful in her dress. The old farm house was filled with the excitement of the day.

She couldn't wait to see her handsome groom. She'd gone simple with his and Merle's attire, she couldn't envision Merle in a tux, and her dress was not that fancy, she didn't want them more dressed up than her.

They'd both wear black pants and black vests, Merle would wear a black shirt and a black tie, and Daryl a white shirt and a black tie. They both seemed pleased and relieved with her choice. She got to the church and slipped into the little room off the vestibule, it had been built to accommodate brides-to-be. She and Amy were in there just talking and giggling, and every time Beth would start to feel nervous Amy would remind her of how much she loved Daryl and how much Daryl loved her.

Shawn, Caesar and Rick helped the guests find seats and Linda was getting the names. When Merle, Carol and Jonah arrived Rick thought Merle seemed uncharacteristically nervous. Hell he'd probably never been in a church before.

Rick showed him where he and Daryl could wait, and where they'd stand for the ceremony. Merle went in that little room and he was sweating bullets, you'd think it wasn't air conditioned.

It was just before noon and the church was full. Everything was perfect. The ceremony was to start in just ten minutes.

The only thing missing was the groom.

By two o'clock the last of the guests had left the church, as Daddy and Merle stood by the door and apologized to everyone for the inconvenience.

The bride-to-be stayed in the little room with her Mama, Maggie and Amy. Devastated, confused and inconsolable.

 **A/N I'm just going to leave this here and hope you don't hate me. I do thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed MOST of it. Please leave a comment / review xo**

 **To see the chapter photo visit my tumblr at bethylmethbrick Thank you again and I'll see you next Thursday xo**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N Thanks for not tracking me down and killing me. Seriously thank you so much for reading along. Let's see if we can discover why Daryl didn't show, and see what's been going on with he and Beth.**

Shawn and Linda stayed to clean up the decorations at the church. Patricia, Amy's Mother, Glenn, and Rick had raced back to the farm to start clearing out everything that had been set-up and decorated for the reception.

No one knew quite what to think or what to say. They were all incredulous, everyone knew these two loved each other, they had for years. What would possess Daryl to not show up at his own wedding?

Merle, Rick, Caesar, they'd all tried calling and texting his number a million times. They'd left messages begging him to call until finally the recording said his message box was full.

Mama, Maggie and Amy had gone to Beth's room with her desperately trying to console her.

Caesar took Carol and Jonah home while Merle followed Hershel into his office. Hershel put it to the other man, "What do you know Merle?"

It wasn't accusatory in any way Hershel was just dumbfounded the same as everyone else.

"I'd been worried Hershel, Daryl never come home all night. I've never known him ta do that before. I thought maybe he n Beth were out somewhere just ya know, bein' together an such, an that maybe they'd fallen asleep. Or that he and Rick and Caesar were out drinkin' it up, havin' some kinda last minute bachelor party deal."

"I's worried this mornin' an I went in his room ta see if he took anythin', ya know packed up n left. But all his stuff is still there. Only thing missin' was what he had on. His weddin' clothes was all neatly laid out right there on his chair."

"Did he tell you anything when he left like where he was going or when to expect him back?"

"Nah, he's a grown man an I don't make him tell me his business, I mean a lotta times I know, or he'll mention he's gonna go huntin' with Rick, things a that nature. I don't usually ask him I mostly think he's gonna see Beth. Damn I just don't know. I'm so fuckin' mad at him right now, sorry, but I'm as worried as I am mad. Shit I can't imagine he'd just chicken out an not show. I didn't think and I don't think Daryl would run. Hell we all know he's been in love with Beth forever."

He heaved a heavy sigh, "I'm sorry Hershel. I've worried about Daryl a lot the past three or four years an I shoulda probably come an talked to ya about it."

Now it was Hershel's turn to sigh heavily. "What kind of worries Merle?"

And Merle shared with him things about the way they were raised, "I know ya know we had our share a beatins, everyone round here knows that. But it was worse than most folks knew. Pardon my language man, but our father was n is the meanest mutha fucker that ever lived. One a my biggest guilt trips was when I got sent up an I left Daryl there alone. Mama was dead, she was never real good at carin' for us kids anyway, but at least with her n I both there Daryl wasn't the only one ta pick on, ta beat, ta make feel worthless an like he deserved every minute of the abuse. And I managed to protect him some. With both Mama n me gone he was the only target."

"I got him outta there as soon as I got outta the pen, as soon as I could, but hell he'd already spent too many years livin' it. And damn he really is the sweet one, I tease him about that but it's true. I mighta deserved some a the beatins I got but Daryl never did."

And then Merle told him about what he called his brother's "Dark Place." He didn't hold back, including telling Hershel about the incident the afternoon he'd seen Carol's scars.

"That was the last time he seemed ta fall into that place. And he always seemed ta snap out of it n everythin' would be fine for a good long while, then somethin' would trigger it again bring a memory up I s'pose. But that day was the worst I'd seen. I talked ta him about seein' someone but he shut me down."

"I can't believe he'd run, just leave Beth. She's his place ta go, his soft landing. No matter what happens he always wants her with him. I don't know that he ever tells her anythin' about what's botherin' him, in fact I doubt he does. But it's like she's where he goes ta get right. She's his light at the end a the tunnel. Every time they was grounded or whatever it'd put him in a flat spin not bein' around her. I can't believe he'd just abandon her."

"I'm worried 'bout him an I'm worried 'bout Beth. It's all a mess." Merle was rubbing a hand over the back of his neck and head.

"Well you're not the only one who had worries, Annette and I worried from time to time too but like you said, he always seemed to snap out of whatever was bothering him. Do you mind if we bring Rick in on this Merle? He may be able to help or he may have connections that could help."

"So what? Ya thinkin' this is some kinda missin' person deal or sumthin'?"

* * *

She was up in her bedroom with her Mama, her sister and her best friend and she couldn't stop sobbing, "Where could he be? What could have happened? How could he do this, just not show up?"

And as much as the other women wanted to give her an answer they didn't know either. Mama had an arm around her girl and she kept repeating, "Bethie I'm sure everything will turn out. Please Honey, please don't cry anymore."

And Maggie and Amy kept saying things like, "There's got to be an explanation Beth, a good one. Daryl would never hurt you this way."

But a week later there was still no word from Daryl and no sign of him. Rick had checked every hospital in the county and the two surrounding counties. He'd even gone so far as to check the morgues, nothing.

Amy drove back to the farm from Benning that following Saturday to talk to her friend. "You know Caesar's leave is over, he's gone back to the fighting and I'm alone. Why don't you come stay with me? Our place has two bedrooms and maybe it will be good for you to have a change, get away for a while. We can take care of each other and comfort each other."

It sounded good to Beth. She dreaded seeing anyone in town. After all she was that girl now, the one who got left at the altar. She didn't think she could take the humiliation of that on top of losing Daryl. She didn't know whether to hate him or worry about him. But in her heart she knew that as angry as she felt toward Daryl, she was always going to love him. That was the worst part. She'd always loved him and she always would.

She took her clothes, her music, her art supplies and her set of disks. She had every photo ever taken of her and Daryl on those disks. She wasn't ready to leave them behind.

Mama and Daddy were supportive hoping this move would somehow help their daughter. Maybe the change of scenery would be good. Maybe she'd make new friends.

Her Daddy gave Amy money toward rent and groceries even though Beth told him she had her own money, her savings. Daddy told her, "No you keep saving. There may come a time you want to get your own place, or get a car or maybe even go to college. But you hang onto it for now. It's always good to have a little something set aside."

Merle, Carol and the baby came to visit before she left. Merle was so apologetic and so heavy-hearted she felt nearly as bad for him as she did for herself. He told her he was sorry and let her know he'd be in touch if he heard anything at all. He pressed five, one hundred dollar bills in her hand, "I'm sorry I ain't got more ta give, but I wanna help how I can. You're gonna need cash."

"No Merle I'm not taking it, I can't. Daddy gave me plenty of money and I have savings. You set that money aside for Jonah, please that would mean more to me." And they did something she and Merle never did, they hugged. She was so touched when he told her he loved her and he'd be around if she needed anything.

* * *

A month later she and Amy were sitting in the kitchen when her phone rang, when she saw Merle's number her stomach did a backflip. He had news, Daryl had called him. He told her that he'd sounded rough, raspy voiced and just generally pissed off at the world. He'd said to Merle, "I just want ya ta let everyone know I ain't dead an I'm real sorry for the trouble I caused. Tell Beth I'm sorry I'm such an asshole and ta get on with her life." And he hung up.

That started a new round of misery for Beth. The only good news being he wasn't dead.

About that time Hershel Greene received a letter in the mail with no return address and two cashier's checks. The note from Daryl said, "I'm sorry about everything. The $3000 I hope covers what you spent on the wedding. The $5,000 is for Beth. I always loved her, always will." That was it.

He didn't know why he did it, it just felt like the right thing. Hershel opened a separate savings account and deposited both checks in it. He didn't tell Beth about the note and the money, fearing this would just be more salt in her wounds.

* * *

Abraham Ford came by every day. He didn't make a nuisance of himself he'd just stop and say hello, ask her and Amy if there was anything he could do for them, anything they needed. Sometimes he'd bring a little something like flowers for them to plant in the yard, or fresh strawberries. Never anything too personal and certainly nothing of a romantic nature. But Beth and Amy knew why he came by. He had never just randomly come by before Beth was there.

Three months later she was sitting in a chair on the small front porch, a book in one hand and her other hand on her rounding tummy. She was watching him, this man who she knew loved her unconditionally and wanted to care for her, and wanted to care for her unborn child. He wanted to give the child his name and raise it as his own. She wished she could love him, he was good and honest and true. He would never hurt her the way Daryl had, but still she knew she could never love anyone but Daryl.

She'd told Abraham he was one of the best people she'd ever known and that she did care for him, she did love him just not in a romantic way. She told him she couldn't marry him like he wanted that it wouldn't be right, and it wouldn't be fair to him. She was honest but he was undeterred, patient. His hope was that over time her broken heart would mend and she'd be ready to love again, and more than anything he wanted to be the man she was ready to love.

So he stayed close and he did the yard work, and he fixed the side gate, and he helped Amy move the living room furniture. And he took Beth out to the movies and to casual dinners. Always just as friends and she tried to pay her own way, but he wouldn't hear of it. And she did love him, just as she'd said. He was a wonderful friend to her and he helped her so much getting through this very hard time. But she just didn't have those feelings for him, not the ones he wanted her to have.

And the pregnancy. She hadn't expected it, she hadn't had any inkling that she might be pregnant. She'd been using birth control, how could she be that 1% of women where it failed? But there was no denying she was pregnant with Daryl's child. The best guess she had was that it happened the Thursday just before the wedding date.

She hadn't wanted to tell anyone. No one knew her here, just Amy and Abraham. No one else needed to know right now. Her parents, everyone, they'd all been hurt enough. She hadn't even adjusted to the idea of a child herself, how could she tell her folks and Merle? This was better. Abraham and Amy both tried to convince her she needed to at least tell her parents, tell her sister and brother. She said she would in time.

Seven months after the wedding date Caesar came home and she offered to leave then, move out. But he and Amy assured her she was welcome to stay for however long she wanted, that they wanted her there and the baby was welcome too. They were even discussing having one of their own. She and Amy had always wanted to have kids at the same time, but not quite like this.

Privately Amy and Caesar talked about her situation, about Daryl leaving and then calling Merle but never having the balls to call Beth. "Amy you know how I feel about Daryl we've been friends forever, but this was a shit play. There's no excuse. If you ask me she'd be better off with Ford. At least that guy has stuck by her, it's obvious he'd do anything for her. Fuck it, Daryl couldn't even show up."

Amy didn't disagree with her husband, not completely, and she understood that he was hurt and angry by everything that had happened. "I just can't believe there isn't more to this, something we don't know. I wish Daryl would show his face. If nothing else he owes Beth a face to face explanation."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Looking back he didn't know or understand why he felt so compelled to go, to confront him. But he did and it had set in motion a chain of events that could never be forgotten, at least not by him. The evidence of the decision he'd made was now a permanent part of him.

He'd just wanted answers. He needed to know why his own father had so brutally mistreated him. It had worried his mind for years and it was only getting worse, it wouldn't let him rest. He'd seen in Hershel Greene what a father could and should be.

He told Beth he had someone he needed to see that night and it wasn't a lie, he did need to. He just wanted to talk, to ask and to try and understand.

He knocked on the door and as soon as his father answered the verbal abuse began. "What ya doin' here ya fuckin' loser?"

Daryl barely got the question out, "I want ya ta tell me why ya done the things ya done ta me, why ya thought it was okay ta hurt your own son." And his father answered by punching him so hard in the jaw he was wobbling when it was immediately followed by a blow to his gut. He fell back and his father kicked him repeatedly and then told him to get the fuck out or he was going to shoot his ass.

Blood was coming from his mouth and he was sure he had some broken ribs. He was beaten physically and emotionally, and he came to the realization his questions would never be answered. There was no answer. He got on the Bike and he rode.

He'd be hard pressed to tell anyone where he rode, but when it happened, when his world changed completely and forever, he'd passed through four counties. He had tears off and on. He'd thought a lot about Beth and thanked God he had her. He knew he was going to look and feel like shit at his own wedding. But he'd be married to her so everything would be okay.

For now he just needed this, needed to ride, needed to clear his head. He was on a two lane just going, not worrying about where he might end up, just as long as he made it to Beth tomorrow nothing else mattered now.

It happened so quickly he wasn't even sure what he'd hit. He would remember later he'd been rounding a curve and he saw something in the road. Although he tried to veer away there wasn't time and chopped bikes are notoriously lightweight and unstable, his rear tire hit the object.

He remembered still gripping the handlebars as the Bike went off the side, and he remembered sliding almost as fast as he'd been riding. At some point he must have lost consciousness because he didn't remember when it stopped.

The next thing he recalled were voices, guys talking to each other. Laughing and saying they couldn't believe the guy had survived that fall, and that he wouldn't live long out here on his own. They joked that if they hadn't been behind him and seen him go over they would never have gotten all his good shit. He remembered they kept saying "claimed" as they dug in his pockets taking his wallet and his cell phone. Then someone yelled "claimed" and took off his leather jacket, another took his helmet, one of them even took the boots off his feet.

Finally someone lifted the Bike from his leg and someone bellowed, "The Bike is mine Len."

And someone else said, "Well yeah Joe, I wasn't gonna take it, just gettin' it for ya."

* * *

He was alone and he couldn't make his body work. He knew he had broken some bones, and he could no longer feel his left leg. During the times he was conscious, a little bit aware, he grieved. He'd missed his wedding and now he was going to die. His body would probably never be found and Beth would think he hadn't cared, that he just ran away.

He had no idea how long he lay there after that, but he was pretty sure based on adding up light and dark, he'd been there four nights when early one morning he heard a voice, "Shit Eric, the poor guy is almost dead. Get somewhere you can get some cell phone service and call 911. Give them the coordinates and tell them they may need search and rescue equipment to get this guy out of here. I'll stay with him, see if I can at least get a little water in him."

The next time he woke he was in a hospital bed and he could see the lines running into him. Some kind of IVs. Everything still hurt like a son of a bitch but he did feel more comfortable, and he no longer felt either hungry or thirsty.

A woman came in and stood next to the bed, "Hello I'm Dr. Tara Chambler and I'm responsible for your treatment. We didn't find any I.D. Do you know your name?"

Fuck yeah he knew his name but maybe he didn't want to tell her, maybe now that he knew his whole life was fucked up beyond repair, maybe it was better if he just stayed disappeared.

"Nah I can't remember much. How long I been here?"

Something told her he wasn't being truthful, but this guy had enough bad news coming, she wasn't going to press him right now. "Okay we'll call you John then, is that alright?"

"Whatever."

"Well John you're one tough customer. You were lying at the bottom of a heck of a mountain for at least four days. Obviously you were dehydrated and you've also had some blood loss, you have broken ribs and a broken left arm. Of course there's also a large assortment of cuts and scrapes and bruises but none of those injuries are life threatening and you should make a full recovery. And two days, you've been here two days."

"Yeah okay. But what about my leg? I's sure my leg was broke."

"Your left leg was very badly injured. It seems that besides the fall, something heavy hit it, do you have any idea what?"

"Well yeah, I's ridin' a motorcycle."

"That's what we thought. The damage to the leg was severe. There was loss of blood to it for days and the bone was shattered, as were all the bones in your foot. There was the impact of the fall and the bike landing heavily. We had to amputate just below your knee."

He didn't yell, he was too stunned, "The fuck. Ya kiddin' me? Why? Why didn't ya just shoot me?"

"I get that you're upset John, but do you realize the number of people in this country who have lost a limb? Think of all the vets. They get by, have rewarding lives and you will too."

"Can't be climbin' around on the roof with only one leg, I won't even be able ta work."

"So you're a roofer?"

"Yeah."

"You remember a lot for a man who can't remember his name."

He looked at her through those two black eyes and asked, "If I tell ya my name are ya gonna have ta call anyone, like my relatives or sumthin'?"

"Not if you're over 18, and I'm sure you are."

"Yeah I am, an I ain't no charity case either I got insurance n stuff. But them guys stole everythin', the wallet the bike, my phone, everythin'. I gotta get the information. Give me a couple days then I'll give ya a name."

* * *

He thought about it for a while and then he thought of just the guy who would do it, that squirrely guy he worked with. Shit he knew the guy had done some time for breaking and entering and he also knew he needed money, he had three kids and another one on the way."

He called him. "Ya do this right I'ma give ya two grand. Ya fuck up, ya get nuthin' an I don't know ya."

"I can do it."

"My sister in law is gone every Thursday mornin' for some mommy an me deal, ten ta noon. Ya slip in, there's a short hallway an my room is the first on the left. There's a canvas duffle bag on the floor in the closet, fill it. Ya get the green metal lock box from the closet shelf an the two framed pictures on the dresser, they're most important. Ya get me jeans, shirts an a jacket, tennis shoes, underwear, socks, however much ya can get in that duffle. Ya bring it to Southside Hospital in Smithton, ta the volunteer desk, ya tell 'em it's for me an I'm in room 410."

"I'm tellin' ya right now Axel, ya better not take nuthin' else an ya better never set foot in that house again. Ya don't never tell anyone anythin' about this, especially don't tell no one ya heard from me. Ya do n I'ma kill ya. It's that simple. We clear?"

"Yeah sure Daryl ain't no need ta threaten me, I ain't gonna fuck this up. Thanks for givin' me the job."

Axel had come through. The metal box had a stash of cash in it, but more important it had his birth certificate, his social security card, his bank book, his one and only credit card, the title to the motorcycle and his insurance documents for his health insurance and the motorcycle insurance.

When Merle got home that night Carol told him, "I think Daryl was here some of his things are gone." Merle was pissed but also relieved. Little Brother was somewhere close.

xxxx

He called on the motorcycle first. The insurance company said they had to send a cop over to take a stolen vehicle report. As much as he hated that idea the Bike was worth some money and more than that, he wanted that health and disability coverage.

He told the cop everything he remembered including the story of the "claimers" and the names he'd heard them use.

He called on his medical plan.

He was going to call social security as soon as he got out and got somewhere he could stay, he needed an address. The hospital social worker had told him he was entitled to disability insurance. He knew he'd better get on that because he had no idea what the hell he was going to do for a living, and he'd paid in since he'd started working.

After another four days in the hospital he was transferred to a rehab facility. Rehab was brutal but he didn't give a fuck. He needed to get back what he could. He was alone now. His life was ruined. He wasn't going begging to his brother and he sure as fuck wasn't going to burden Beth with what was left of him.

She'd get over him soon enough and she was better off without him. She'd find a new guy and be a lot happier than he could ever make her. That didn't mean he hadn't shed tears, that he didn't miss her more than anything, that he didn't love her. He was always going to love Beth Greene. He spent all day every day missing her. She would always be everything to him. That's why he had to stay away.

When he'd gotten to the rehab hospital a woman had come to his room. "My name is Denise Cloyd and your medical doctor Tara Chambler, asked me to take on your case. She thought maybe I could help you through the next few weeks." She didn't bother to tell him that Tara told her all about the scars on his back and his depression.

"Help me what?"

"Help you deal with the emotions and the grief of losing your leg. That's pretty serious stuff Daryl and something you and I should probably talk about."

"What, you're a shrink? I don't need ta talk about none a that shit Doc. I can handle it by myself, I don't need no one."

But Denise had a kind of patient, quiet and soulful manner to her, she was non-threatening and friendly. She put him at ease. By the time Denise was done with him that day he agreed to keep seeing her. She held him to that and they had a one hour session every day.

Two weeks after he'd been transferred to the rehab facility he was getting around on crutches like he'd been doing it his whole life. The next step, as soon as that wound healed just a little bit more, he'd get his prosthetic.

It was then he had a couple of visitors.

The cop who'd taken his stolen vehicle report brought them in and introduced him to Aaron and Eric, the men who'd found him. They were environmentalists working for the EPA. There'd been a tip about a lot of illegal dumping around the area where he was found. They'd been documenting the dumping and mapping locations for a couple of days. That's how they stumbled on him and saved his life.

They stayed and visited for a long time. He told them he was going to be released and become an outpatient in just a couple of days. All he needed was a place to stay. Aaron smiled, "Well we have a pretty nice place and there's a downstairs guest room, you'd be welcome to stay until you finish rehab."

"Thanks but I ain't a charity case."

"Well you said you did carpentry work and as soon as that arm is strong enough we've got projects we were going to pay someone to do. You can earn your stay and you can chip in for groceries. If you think you need to pay more, we'll work something out for the rent, how's that?'

"I ain't got my tools."

"Oh we have plenty of tools but we've discovered they're worthless if you don't know what you're doing." Aaron had a kind, friendly smile and like Doc Denise he put Daryl at ease.

"'K, as long as I earn my keep. You guys done a lot for me, saved my life, I owe ya, thanks."

Soon after the claimers got popped, thanks in part to the details he was able to provide the cops. He received part of the reward money that had been offered by a state motorcycle owner's association. Apparently the claimers had quite the chop shop and stolen parts business.

$20,000.00 was added to his already healthy savings.

And he'd begun sending Merle a postcard every couple of weeks. They'd just say something like, "I'm fine, miss you guys, especially Jonah." But Merle and Carol were happy to know he was okay.

Three months later he called a realtor and made a deal and bought a property. It was something he'd thought about for years and now seemed like the time to take the plunge. He'd move in soon.

One month later he felt like he'd gotten a lot of his life back. He was getting around pretty damn good on that prosthetic leg, and doing jobs around Aaron and Eric's place had taught him he could still work. He even got other small jobs in town and it felt good to be making money again. He wasn't roofing but that wasn't the only kind of carpentry job he was capable of. And he was good.

And the daily sessions with Denise had helped give him a new outlook on life. She'd gotten him to talk about growing up with Will Dixon. His feelings of abandonment when his mother died, and then when Merle went to the pen. The physical abuse and the mental abuse. And they'd spent hours talking about Beth. What she meant to him, how important she'd always been and how much he was suffering being apart from her.

"Don't you think you've been unfair to Beth by not contacting her?"

"Nah, I'm doin' her a favor. She's better off if she thinks I'm an asshole that run out on her. Now she's got a chance ta have a good life."

"Well I thought you loved her but it seems to me you're being unfair to her in several ways. Don't you feel it should be her decision if she wants you in her life? Who are you to decide what she does or doesn't want? She's been in love with you since you were five years old. That in itself is remarkable. So now what, you're just going to let her believe that the boy and the man she's loved her whole life never really loved her? Because you can bet your butt right now Daryl Dixon, that's what she's been thinking ever since you didn't show up at the church."

He was taken aback by that and it got him wondering, was there really a way? Would she give him another chance? He'd messed everything up so badly but maybe Doc was right, maybe he should try. He made a plan.

* * *

Seven months after his accident he said goodbye to Aaron and Eric and Doc Denise. Well Doc wasn't letting him off that easy, they'd be having three times weekly phone sessions.

He headed for his new home. If Beth agreed to take him back he just knew he could fix it up so she'd be happy there. Aaron and Eric had given him all their tools on the condition he'd come back after he got settled and build them a back deck. Done.

He had a second hand Ford truck with an automatic tranny so it was easy for him to drive with his prosthetic. He had the tools and a few clothes. He went right to his new place and started getting settled in.

Two weeks later he checked around and made a call to Axel, he found out where she was and he headed that way prepared to beg. He got close to the base and his nerves took over, but he wasn't going to chicken out, he just needed a little something to take the edge off.

He went in a tavern sat at the bar and ordered a tall one. He'd only taken the one swallow when Shane Walsh walked in. The fuck? Then he remembered the rumor that Lori was down this way somewhere, maybe they were back at it. Yeah Olive Oyl was just that dumb.

He hoped Shane wouldn't see him, but sure enough he walked right over and slapped him harder than necessary on the back. "Hey there Dixon long time no see. Ya got quite the reputation after what you did to Beth. Damn that was cold."

Daryl didn't want to fight him, he had something else he was going to do and he wasn't going to show up looking like he'd been in a bar fight. "Shut the fuck up Shane you don't know nuthin' 'bout me n Beth."

"Well I know there ain't no you and Beth. Shit she didn't wait long once you left her. She high tailed it down here right away. I've seen her twice in town with that Abraham Ford guy, from Amy and Caesar's wedding. Shit she's so pregnant she looks like she's gonna pop any minute." He laughed and then put the knife in just a little deeper, "It sure as hell didn't take her long to replace your sorry ass."

Daryl didn't do or say anything he set the beer down on the bar and left. He just needed to get home.

xxxx

Abraham had just put the last coat of finish on the crib for her. He'd wanted to buy her a new set of furniture for the baby but she'd been adamant she had to buy her own. When she bought that used crib and said she was going to refinish it he got adamant with her. "I can't let you do that Beth. You shouldn't be breathing that stuff in and you're way too far along anyway. I'll refinish it for you and you can pay me with a chicken dinner. How's that?"

And she knew he was right and she'd agreed.

He came in the kitchen door to let her know it was done. He saw everything out on the kitchen counter ready to be prepared, but no Beth. He smiled thinking she must be napping. He only intended to peek in at her and then he'd go ahead and fry the chicken himself.

He looked in her open door. An old George Strait tune was softly playing on that little Pill thing of hers. She looked so beautiful and so sweet curled up on the bed sound asleep. In her arms she cradled a framed photo of herself and Daryl Dixon.

He knew then what he had to do. He couldn't just let this go on, he loved her too much. He wanted her but even more than that he wanted her to be happy. He knew better than anyone there was only one man that was ever going to make her happy.

He was going to make it his mission to find Daryl Dixon for her.

 **A/N If you think it was long, well believe me there's so much more I wanted to include. We'll find out more about what Daryl went through in the next chapter, and how our supporting players did as well. Thanks so much. I would really appreciate hearing your thoughts on this one, please comment / review.**

 **To see the chapter photo please visit my tumblr bethylmethbrick See you next Thursday!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N Thank you for keeping the faith! I'm hoping those of you who hung around will be happy you did. And thank you to new followers and all of you awesome reviewers.**

 **I'd say about 50% of you are feeling very angry at Daryl, 30% are angry but understanding, and a few of you are still seeing Abraham as a threat to Bethyl. Oh, and most everyone was just plain mad. Let's see where we go from here.**

 _We backtrack a little in the first part of our story, to just over a week prior to Daryl going to see Beth, before he ends up in the Tavern hearing devastating news from Shane about Beth and Abraham._

 _We learn how Daryl felt right after the accident, how he perceived things before he started to get emotionally healed. And we learn how he handled trying to repair the important relationships he'd separated himself from before traveling to seeing Beth.  
_

 _Then we'll come back to events beginning right after his meeting with Shane._

 **One Week Before Going to Benning**

He had a lot of things he needed to make right in his life, he'd fucked everything up just about as badly as he possibly could have. He'd been so sure he was doing the right thing when he just removed himself from the lives of the people he loved.

Even before the wedding date he'd begun to solidly believe the things he'd heard growing up. That he was worthless, no good, lazy and a burden to everyone that knew him.

When he lost the leg, as far as he was concerned that had sealed the deal, he knew then that all he would ever be was a burden. He'd just hoped he could manage to take care of himself, to have some kind of bare bones existence. Disappearing seemed like the best option for him and everyone else. Then the people he loved, the ones that used to be in his life could move on, quit worrying about his worthless ass.

Sure he knew there were people who would take care of him, like his brother and Carol. But his brother had been caring for him for several years now and he had his own family and his own life. He didn't need the burden of a worthless little brother to worry about.

And Hershel and Annette Greene. Shit they'd taken care of him for most of his life, feeding him, tending to him, encouraging him and trying to teach him a thing or two. Even when rules and punishment seemed harsh he knew they never did anything out of meanness. They always acted out of love. Well they didn't need the burden of his presence any longer. They were getting old now they deserved to have their own lives, and to enjoy their older years.

But mostly there was Beth. She was so sweet, so kind and so good, so beautiful in every way. She deserved so much better than to be strapped with the burden of him. She deserved a man that could give her things, not just material things, but a guy with something on the ball. Not some worthless piece of shit who would end up just bringing her down.

Then Doc Denise had started working with him. At first he hated it. It was so uncomfortable to talk about all those things that had happened to him. But the abuse was a topic that couldn't be avoided.

It was impossible to predict when his father would lash out at him and in time he'd opened up to her about those things. He started to tell her the stuff that he remembered, like being an eight year old boy asleep on a cot in the corner. A little boy who'd been left alone for three or four days, and then suddenly there were loud noises as his father came busting in the door drunk, cussing, yelling at Daryl for some imagined misdeed, then taking his belt off and beating him. It was so bad he wasn't sure if he'd passed out, or if he'd just somehow lost awareness of what was happening.

Doc helped him to realize that as awful as that was, and as much as that may seem to be the worst a person could suffer, what had left the biggest scars was the verbal and emotional abuse.

The intensity of talking about these things every day had felt like its own kind of torture, until he slowly begin to realize how much it helped to share with another person, a person who didn't judge him based on what he'd been through, someone who simply wanted to help him learn to understand himself, and even grow to like himself.

It started to seem to him that in some ways the last encounter he'd had with his father, the horrible accident and the loss of his leg, had brought on one of the best things to happen to him. He'd finally started to get the help he now knew he'd needed for years.

Doc Denise had taken hold of him and yanked him out of that rabbit hole he was falling deeper and deeper into.

But before he'd gotten to that point he'd managed to lay waste to the few relationships he was fortunate enough to have.

It wasn't until he'd worked with her for a few months that he began to see how skewed his thinking had been. He'd shut them all out completely. In his effort not to be a burden he'd taken away their right to be part of his life if they chose to. He thought he'd given them freedom, freedom from having to worry about him and his problems, freeing them to move on. Especially Beth.

Now he had to try and salvage those relationships and even if they couldn't be salvaged, he at the least owed them all as much of an explanation as he was able to provide. Even if they could never forgive his behavior he had to tell them he was sorry, and maybe they'd at least understand a little bit about why he'd acted like he did. Especially Beth.

He loved Beth more than anything in the world and he'd thought he was making her life better, until Doc had pointed out how unfair he was being to her. How she should get to be the one to decide if she loved him and wanted him in her life, the way he still loved and wanted her. But he'd never given her that chance. He'd just let her believe that he'd run out on her, that he didn't love her enough to marry her. Nothing could be further from the truth. He still woke every day wishing he was married to Beth Greene. The same as he had every day since second grade.

What was going to be the hardest was just going to her and talking to her, trying to make amends for not being there and for not contacting her. For just shutting down and closing her out. He wasn't too proud to beg on his hands and knees for her to take a chance on giving him a chance. Yeah, that was going to be the hardest.

* * *

He started with the person in his life who had lived so many of the same things Daryl had lived, his brother. He knew Merle wouldn't let him off easy and he was okay with that. He also knew somewhere deep in his heart that Merle was always going to be his brother first. He may yell, shit he may even kick his ass, but he was pretty sure Merle would never completely turn his back on him.

He went on a Friday at 6:30, he knew Merle would be home from work and they would have already eaten their supper. He sure didn't want Carol thinking he expected to be fed.

He still had a key so he could have walked right in, but that would be assuming he was still welcome, so he knocked. When the door opened his brother's jaw dropped opened. Then he'd grabbed Daryl in a bear hug, and then he pushed him away but kept those big hands on his shoulders. "The fuck Little Brother, where ya been?"

Carol came then and she hugged him and what he noticed was he was open to that. Before the only person he ever cared to let close was Beth, but his comfort zone had been expanded. That was its own little reward for the work he'd done with Doc.

They didn't get around to talking about what was really on everyone's mind until they'd shared the common pleasantries; and he'd spent some time playing with Jonah. Being around his nephew and seeing how much the little boy had changed in just a few months, it reminded him of the lesson he'd learned, just how much can happen in a very short span of time and how much everything can change.

Then Merle and Carol put his nephew to bed.

The time had come and his brother, always true to the man he was, put it to him plain, "Now tell us just what the fuck ya been doin' and why the fuck ya ain't even bothered ta give us the courtesy of a call, let us know where ya was? I should just kick your goddamn ass right now!" Carol placed a hand on her husband's and he turned to her, "We got a right ta know Carol, a right ta ask, an I damn sure got a right ta be pissed off at the kid an so do you. Ya lost more'n one night a sleep worryin' over him."

Merle was angry and Daryl didn't blame him. He told them everything that had happened, from the confrontation with their father all the way through to buying the property, and then moving not too far away from them. He tried to explain to his brother and sister in law his reasons for behaving the way he did after the accident. He apologized for not trusting them enough, for not believing in them enough to know they'd want him in their lives.

Carol was fighting tears but Merle just kept his lips pursed and occasionally nodded his head. "Ya always was a tender person on the inside kid, I know that. I guess I even understand a little bit about why ya done things the way ya did, but me an Carol woulda liked ta be there ta help however we could. We'da liked ta have the chance. You're my brother an I love ya Daryl, but I can't just act like none a this happened, like ya ain't hurt us cuz ya damn sure have. But I think ya know I ain't inclined ta give up on ya now. A course we want ya in our lives."

Daryl nodded, "Thank you for the chance, I'ma try real hard ta make it up an ta be a better brother, a better man."

"Tell me more 'bout this leg, I didn't notice ya hobblin' on nuthin'."

"Yeah I've learned ta live with it real good. It don't really slow me down much at all, hell sometimes I forget I even have it, at least for a little while. I've even ridden a Bike a few times. Don't know that I'm ready ta buy one yet, but I found out I can do it an there's plenty a guys out there missin' arms and legs still ridin' motorcycles."

Although all wasn't forgiven and forgotten, the evening ended on a positive note and Daryl promised Carol he'd be there for Sunday dinner.

* * *

Saturday morning he headed to the farm. It was a much scarier prospect than visiting Merle but whatever the outcome he knew he had to do it.

He showed up ready to receive the tongue lashing he knew he deserved. He apologized to them the same as he had to Merle and Carol. Her Daddy was hard eyed when he asked him for the whole story, and he told them the whole story.

Hershel Greene was torn. This young man had broken his daughter's heart. He'd caused Hershel's family their greatest upset, it had been incredibly hurtful. And yet he was also like one of their own children. The one that had somehow lost himself and needed extra care and guidance, and the most love and understanding along the way.

Like Carol her Mama had tears but her Daddy caught him off balance when he said, "I feel the burden of responsibility here too son. I knew you were often troubled, I knew there was a dark cloud following you. Instead of trying to help you by insisting you get help, I chose to ignore the problem. I guess I just hoped it would somehow lessen as time passed. I tried to convince myself that with enough love and guidance you'd 'get over it.' I was far more selfish than you."

They talked most of the morning and finally he asked how she was. Mama told him, "We've worried Daryl, she's distanced herself from us, from her sister, from everyone really but Amy. That's not to say we don't talk to her a couple of times a week, but she says she just can't come home to the farm, that there are too many memories here right now. Then she promises that eventually she will. We've offered to drive down there but it seems like she's always got an excuse why we shouldn't. I don't know if she's just trying to avoid everything that reminds her of home, or if she's hiding something deeper."

Daryl wasn't any less baffled than they were; she'd always been so close with these two people. Well if she'd agree to talk to him when he finally saw her again, he supposed he'd get his answers then.

Like Merle and Carol the Greene's were hurt and they felt anger toward him for what he'd done, but they were willing to try to get to a place where they could forgive him, accept what he'd done and move on.

He left on a mostly positive note, with a handshake from her Daddy and a hug from her Mama. And he promised them he'd come for dinner the following Sunday.

Then he'd go to Benning that Monday, see her and try to make things right. He'd see Caesar and Amy and try to make it right with them too.

* * *

He pulled out of the driveway and onto that county road. He steered the truck to the side cut the engine and called Rick. He asked if they could talk. He could tell his friend was shocked to hear from him. "Yeah, yeah, let me ask my girl if she'll watch Carl, hang on." When he came back on the line he said, "It ain't that I don't want ya here, it's just that between Carl and my girl's little guy we got a lotta kid noise and action over here. That makes it tough ta just talk sometimes. Meet me over at Gray's we'll have a beer."

It made Daryl smile to know Rick had a girl and he sounded happy.

He was waiting for him when Rick walked in the door of that little Tavern. He stood and they shook hands, but then Rick took him in a bro hug and the relief he felt at that surprised him.

Over beers he made his apology to Rick and told his story the same as he had with Merle and the Greene's. Rick listened with that head cocked to one side and those eyes trained on him, taking it all in. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed this man. They'd been so close growing up and he'd wronged Rick with the way he'd behaved, the same as he'd wronged all the other people that mattered.

Rick just clapped him on the shoulder, "Daryl I been through so much bullshit in my own life I kinda get where your head was at. Shit man you know how long it took me ta dig myself outta that dark place after what happened with Lori. Ya saw how crazy I got. And then bein' a kid with a kid of my own, oh man, thank God I had my Mom and Dad. Even with all that though, I never had ta go through anythin' near as awful as you did. Daryl you're my brother, you being back with us now, that's everythin'."

Daryl was so deeply touched by that, he felt himself get emotional but he held back a little, nodded at Rick and looked him in the eye, but he couldn't get words out.

xxxx

He'd done all the relationship repair work he could do for now. It had been hard to go to all of them with his hat in his hand, asking for their understanding and forgiveness. He'd put them through hell and he understood that. And he knew it wasn't all fixed, but the first step was the hardest and most important one and he'd taken it. He knew the burden was on him to rebuild the trust and the bond in those relationships.

Next he'd see Beth and that was going to be the hardest of all. He didn't expect her to greet him with open arms, far from it. He knew how badly he'd fucked this up, how he'd hurt her and made everything so much worse than it had to be. He was just hoping she'd at least talk to him, that she'd let him try and tell her where he'd been and what had happened, and that he could explain what he knew now that he'd never known before.

And he hoped that she'd agree to let him try and make it right somehow, that she'd eventually be willing to give him another chance.

He knew it was a lot to hope for, probably too much. But still he hung onto that hope with both hands. He wanted it so much.

 **After the Trip to Benning (Seeing Shane)**

He got home to his place and walked in the front door and straight out the back one. He stood looking at the water and his heart was broken. He'd been prepared to have it broken, or at least he thought he was prepared. But he'd thought he would at least get to see her, that he'd get one last look at her. He'd hoped that just maybe at the very least she'd let him apologize.

He didn't blame her for replacing him and Abraham had always seemed like a nice enough guy. He was big and strong with a successful career. He had his shit together and Daryl had known from the first time he'd seen the guy he was completely taken with Beth.

He was just surprised it had happened so quickly that she was already about to have his baby. He guessed it was his ego that made him think he'd be just a little harder to replace than that.

His stump was starting to ache. He noticed it seemed to react to his emotions. He sat in the chair to take the pressure off of it and he thought about what he was going to do now. And he cried. He loved her so much and he'd let it all slip away. She had no fault in any of it, everything that had happened was on him. Knowing that, acknowledging it, somehow made it hurt more. This step she'd taken, it may have been preventable if he'd had his head on right, if he would have at least called her.

And then he thought about all the times Doc Denise told him he had to quit beating himself up about everything that happened in his life. That he was a victim but that didn't mean he had to keep being a victim.

And even though Beth would never know, he decided that what he wanted to do now was all the things he'd originally planned to do for her, for them. He was going to fix this place up just the way he'd always thought would make her happy to be here. He knew there would never be another woman. He'd always known there never could be. He'd just live here with her memory.

Yeah he'd start all that first thing in the morning. Right now he needed to drink over it, cry over it, wallow in it. In the morning he'd call Doc and then he'd strap on his tool belt and get busy.

* * *

Abraham went out to the back just as quietly as he could. He didn't want to wake her and he had to act fast, before he changed his mind.

He called an old buddy he'd been friends with since they were boots. This buddy was a big deal over in Army Intelligence now. "Yeah man I need your help with something. I'm trying to find a young friend of mine. A few months ago he just disappeared clean off the map. No one's seen or heard from him. Do you think you can help out?"

"Sure, I just need a name and whatever else you know." Abraham gave him everything he knew and he was shocked when first thing the next morning he had a text, "Check your email, everything's there. Next time give me a tougher case."

Damn, Homeland Security was better than he'd realized. And this report had it all. So now Abraham knew where he'd been and where he was. Hospital, rehab, working, laying low. And he'd bought a place not too far away where he was living now, it'd maybe take an hour and a half to get there from here.

He thought about just what would be the best way to handle it. All kinds of ideas came to mind starting with him going there and kicking the kid's ass. Sure, he understood why the guy didn't make it to his own wedding, hell he'd been half dead in the middle of Bumfuck, Georgia. But what he completely failed to understand is why the guy never even called Beth.

Shit he thought, if Beth Greene loved him the way she loved Daryl Dixon he'd be the happiest son of a bitch in the world. And it was so hard to figure what was up with the guy because he'd seen the way the kid looked at her, the way he was around her, it was obvious he was in love. Abraham Ford didn't understand it but he figured maybe it wasn't his to understand. Maybe the guy could make her understand.

He decided to handle it like any other military operation, develop a strategy. And the strategy was for a face to face confrontation. That was the only way he thought they might be able to work through this. Shit storms of this magnitude could not be handled with emails, love letters, or texts and phone calls. He thought he had a damn solid idea how to spring it on the both of them and let them hash it out. Not that he wouldn't be right there to pick up the pieces if the little bastard didn't play nice.

That afternoon he sat her down in the backyard and he did something he'd never done with her, he talked tough, like she was one of his men that had stepped a little out of line. "You've let this go on too long. You owe this to your parents Beth. Don't you think it's gonna cut mighty deep when they find out you held this back from them? Don't you think your Mama will want to be there when her first grandchild is born? Shit these people have done everything for you, how can you do this to them now?"

"You shouldn't be driving that far this close to your time so I'm going to take you myself. You pack up everything you're going to need for you and the baby. Then you call Mama and Daddy and you tell them you'll be home tomorrow and why. I'll be here to pick you up at 0700."

She'd done nothing more than blink and then she just sighed and said, "Okay you're right. I'll be packed and ready."

Shit maybe he should have gotten a little tough with her a long time ago.

He went home, had a little whiskey and a big cigar and he called her Daddy. He told him what his plan was. Her Daddy had actually laughed softly and said, "You never know it could work and it's certainly worth a try. Thank you for everything you've done for our daughter." And even though Abraham Ford's own heart was breaking, he was glad he'd decided to do this. If there was a chance for her to be happy then that was what he wanted.

* * *

He had loaded up her cases and that pack and play baby bed thing she'd gotten and they were ready. He took a deep breath and got in the driver's seat. "It won't be nearly as bad as you're thinking Honey. Your Mama and Daddy aren't going to be interested in scolding you or judging you for your decisions, they just want their girl home."

She reached over and squeezed his hand, "Thank you for this Abraham. You've been so good to me. I could never repay you for the kindness and the love and support you've shown me. I honestly don't know how I could possibly have made it without you." And she gave him that beautiful smile and all he wanted in that moment was to take her in his arms and kiss her.

He smiled back while he lied, "Well that's what friends are for Honey. Now I should tell you, we're going to go just a little off course. I need to stop and see an old pal for just a minute. It'll give us a chance to stretch our legs."

"I don't mind at all, you know me I'll probably fall asleep as soon as we go three blocks anyway."

And that's just what she did and she didn't wake until he'd pulled into the drive and turned off the ignition.

She recognized the place immediately. What would they be doing here? And that's just what she asked him, "Abraham why are we here?"

"My friend owns the joint. Wait here in the car I'll just go make sure he's in, then I'll take you in to meet him." He walked in the office and there was Daryl Dixon patching a hole in the wall. Their eyes locked and then Abraham saw it there on the desk, it was that same framed picture she'd been cradling of the two of them.

Abraham broke the silence, "You ain't that hard to find when a person sets their mind to it."

Daryl wasn't nasty, more like resigned when he said, "Damn I hope ya didn't come here ta gloat. Trust me man I'm hurtin' bad enough. I already know 'bout you an Beth that you're together an you're havin' a baby an all. I don't really need my nose rubbed in it."

Abraham actually smiled, "Damn kid I don't know where you get your information but nothing would make me happier than if that was the truth. But sadly it ain't. I'll let her tell you all about it."

Daryl was left confused when the man quickly went back out the door.

Beth was in the car still stunned. How could such a coincidence be, that they'd have pulled into this little lodge just outside Markton? And there was "their" cabin there at the end. It had been a few years but the place was permanently etched in her memory. This place where they took such a big step together and where they'd promised each other forever. Where Daryl said they'd always be safe.

She was lost in her memories when Abraham opened the door, "C'mon Honey let me help you out of the car, someone wants to see you." She didn't want to go in but she also didn't feel like telling Abraham why she didn't want to, so she just took his hand.

He was standing there behind that tall check-in desk and she saw the tears immediately come to his eyes, "Beth."

"Daryl." And the tears in her eyes started to fall.

Abraham walked over and slapped a hand on the desk in front of Daryl, "Don't fuck this up again kid because I guarantee you I'd never do this for you twice." He turned to Beth, "Anything upsets you or you want out of here you call me, I'll come right back for you Honey. I already told your Daddy you wouldn't be home for a couple of days." He bent down, kissed her cheek and walked out that door with tears in his own eyes.

He pulled up to the little cabin at the far end and unloaded the cases and the pack and play.

Then he raced out of that drive to find the biggest bottle of whiskey and the fattest cigar he could hunt down.

Daryl was out from behind the desk and standing in front of her. He wanted to hug her so bad he swore his whole body hurt. "Beth, Baby I've never been sorrier 'bout anythin' in my life, never. I fucked this up so bad, I know I did an I'd do anythin' ta make this right, anythin'. I love ya girl, I always have an I always will. I wanted it all with you Beth an I screwed it up." And it seemed to finally dawn on him then. "The baby? If the baby's not his…"

"He's yours, ours. We'd always planned on Wes or Ben for a boy, but with you gone well I wasn't sure what to do anymore. He's due in about three weeks."

He was crying but she was crying so hard her little shoulders were shaking and he decided to just take a chance. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close to him as he could. She didn't hug him back, but she also didn't push him away.

And then he felt it, like a hard thump from her tummy. He couldn't believe it, he pulled back just enough to look in her eyes. "Yes, that was your son kicking you, he's very angry. So is his Mommy."

 **A/N It's a beginning. The question remains, can he convince Beth he's worth taking another chance on? Can they rebuild? Can she trust Daryl with her heart? Again, thank you for reading and I'd love to read your comments, please review. xo**

 **To see the chapter photo please visit my tumblr bethylmethbrick Thank you again xo**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N Thank you all so much for following along on our journey from kindergarten through Daryl and Beth's early twenties. What started out as fun and innocence turned a little dark as Daryl's demons wouldn't rest. Our couple is now just 22 years old, still very young and still in love even though they're apart.**

 _The original prompt for this story came from Kevkye here on FF. I'm afraid I took that prompt and almost completely re worked it. Not that it wasn't great, but it didn't fit into my interpretation of Merle, and there was a big element to the story I just couldn't wrap my head around writing. The elements I did keep were Daryl and Beth growing up together, Daryl leaving Beth "at the altar" and Abraham having an interest in Beth. KevKye gives me lots of great prompts and she's understanding when stuff just won't fly a certain way for me. Thank you my friend!_

 **A little side note to my guest reader / reviewer ks – send me a PM and I'll answer your question about Deputy.**

* * *

 _And then he felt it, like a hard thump from her tummy. He couldn't believe it, he pulled back just enough to look in her eyes. "Yes, that was your son kicking you, he's very angry. So is his Mommy."_

"Ya both got every right ta be angry at me Beth, more than angry. I know I did the wrong thing, made the wrong choice. But it took me a long while ta realize what I'd done. The trouble n the worry an the pain I caused ya an everyone else I love. I suppose ya already heard by now where I was n what happened an all."

"No I haven't heard anything. I had no idea I would see you today. Abraham said he was taking me home to the farm so I could have the baby with Mama and Daddy there with me. I didn't know where you were." And she began to cry again and again he moved to hug her close.

"Ya got no idea how much I'm hatin' myself right now." And it suddenly seemed like she kind of lost her balance. "C'mon, let's go over ta the cabin where ya can sit down an I can get ya a glass a water."

"Yes, I want to talk Daryl. I want you to explain yourself to me, tell me why you would just throw us away like you did. You broke my heart Daryl Dixon and you owe me an explanation."

"I do Beth an I'll try an explain myself as best I can."

When she saw inside the little cabin she felt like her heart stopped for just a minute. It was like a step back in time. Nothing had changed since they'd stayed there all those years ago, and her memories came flooding back.

"I ain't done nuthin' to it yet but I's plannin' on rebuildin' it, makin' this into a proper little home. I's hopin' someday you'd agree ta live here with me. I know that was foolish on my part, but that was my dream. Then when I heard you was with Abraham an the two a you was havin' a baby together I almost changed my mind. But I thought I'd do it for ya anyway, just cuz I knew you was always gonna live live here in my heart."

And again he thought she seemed to almost lose her balance. "Lay down Beth, I'll sit on a kitchen chair, c'mon now, let me help ya. I don't want you an the baby gettin' hurt, even if he did kick me." And she tried hard not to smile at his little joke.

He went to the small fridge and got her a bottle of water, opened it and set it on the small bedside table.

She lay there on her side facing him. He took the two chairs from the kitchen table and he set them there by the bed, facing each other. He sat in one and it seemed then that he'd used both hands to help lift his left leg and move the leg to rest on the chair. That was odd.

She planned to ask him if he'd somehow hurt his leg, but first she wanted to set the record straight about her and Abraham, and she wanted to know where he'd heard she was with him. "What gave you the idea I was with Abraham in some kind of romantic way, and that he and I were having a baby?"

"I come down ta Benning ta see ya, ta tell ya what had happened, ta try an explain myself, apologize, an ta beg ya ta give me another chance. I got real close an I got nervous, I wasn't gonna chicken out or nuthin', just have a beer ta steady myself an then go talk to ya. Shane come walkin' in. I's wishin' he wouldn't see me but a course he did an a course he come right over ta me. He started in right away 'bout what a mess I'd made a things, like I didn't already know. But I wasn't gonna fight him, I's comin' ta talk to ya. Then he asked had I heard you an Abraham was together an you was havin' a baby, said he'd seen the two a ya out a couple times. I wasn't gonna try n break up a happy home. I figured if ya cared for Abraham enough ta marry him so quick an have his baby, you was over me anyways. So I come on home."

She told him the truth of what had happened. "I love Abraham, besides Amy he's my best friend. I'm not going to lie about it he wanted a lot more than friendship. You know how he felt. He did want to marry me and give the baby his name, raise him as his own. I was a little tempted, it would be the easy way and I knew he'd take care of me and the baby. But I couldn't do that to him, he was too good, too kind. I knew I could never sleep with him and that would all just be so unfair. Even though I knew I broke his heart he still stuck by me, did everything for me. And we did go out and do things like have dinner and go to the movies, those kinds of things. I suppose Shane could have seen us somewhere. I know Lori's living around there close by. Amy saw her one day at the mall, she told Amy she and Shane were together and they were solid. But Amy and Caesar had seen Shane out at a bar tomcatting around."

"I guess I owe Abraham big for steppin' in an doin' what I shoulda been doin' all along, takin' care a you an the baby. I failed ya Beth an I know ya probably can't ever forgive me an I don't blame ya, I don't."

She was crying again and he got her a box of tissues from the bathroom.

"Tell me what happened Daryl, where were you and why didn't you get in touch me."

He took a deep breath and he moved to stand, he winced a little when he stood. He made his way to the fridge, got out a beer and came back over to his seat. Again he lifted his left leg to rest on the other chair. She didn't miss any of that, but she waited to hear his story.

And he told her the story, every detail from the visit to his father to his decision to buy this place, the one place he thought of as home. "It was the closest I ever felt ta havin' a place where I belonged. I know it don't seem ta make any sense at all, but we was here together, we made love for the first time. It meant so much ta me that you would trust me with yourself like that. I didn't wanna leave I's afraid that life was, well I don't know it's hard ta explain, but I just felt like if I could hide out here with you nuthin' bad could touch us, hurt us. I always thought that was what havin' a real home meant, you was safe. I know it don't make sense, but I wanted it."

He went on to tell her about going to see Merle, and her Mama and Daddy and Rick. "And the next day after I had Sunday dinner with your folks was when I come ta see ya. You was gonna be my hardest ta face after what I done but I's ready. Shit I even thought I's ready ta finally hear ya tell me ta go fuck myself. But when I heard what I heard from Shane, damn, I knew I's never gonna be ready ta lose ya forever. But I's done ruinin' your life so I come back here. I got good an drunk, an then I's gonna go ta work an do all the things ta this old place I had planned ta do ta make ya happy. Even though I knew then you was never even gonna see it anyway. Like I said, you was always gonna live here with me."

And then he said, "I'm sorry I gotta get this leg off, it's killin' me. I'ma just go in the bathroom a minute n take care of it."

"No Daryl I want to see."

"Nah, ya don't mean that an it's okay."

"Don't you dare try to tell me what I mean, you don't know. Now let me see."

He couldn't help but smile, she didn't get feisty real often but he'd always liked it when she did. "Alright, but I gotta get my crutches." He went to the small closet and pulled them out. He sat back down and went into what seemed to her to be quite a few steps. First he pushed what looked like a button near where his ankle would have been, then he pulled off a sock-like sleeve that tightly covered the entire leg portion of the prosthetic and part of his thigh. It looked like a tattooed leg, he smiled when he saw her look at it, "Yeah, I finally got my whole leg tatted up, I always did wanna be just that cool."

Then he pulled the fiberglass prosthetic off and he told her, "This one here is a temporary, I'll probably have a couple more a these 'til I get my own that's custom made for me. It takes a while ta get the joint an all that stuff worked out just right." And then he pulled off a series of more tight fitting sock-like sleeves and finally he pulled off what he told her was a silicone umbrella. That's when she saw his stump. It had a round circle of scars where he'd been stitched after the amputation, but it had a mostly smooth appearance.

It was then she started to cry hard. "I'm sorry Beth, fuck I knew I shouldn't a let ya seen all a that. I didn't mean ta upset ya, I'ma cover up right now, sorry."

"It's not that Daryl, it's that you should have let me be there with you. It hurts so much that you'd think I couldn't handle it, that I didn't love you enough."

He stood quickly, bracing himself on the chair back, and he knelt down as best he could on the floor by the bed and placed his hand to the back of her head, "Nah Baby nah that wasn't even close ta what I's thinkin'. I's tryin' in my own screwed up way ta keep ya from havin' ta have a mess like me in your life. I thought you'd have such a better kind of a life without me. I didn't do right by ya Beth, it wasn't that I didn't believe in your love, it's that I didn't believe I deserved it."

He put his head down on the bed, as though he was ashamed and couldn't look at her. She touched him then, lightly rubbing her hand on the back of his head. "You always had that special way of driving me crazy with that stuff Daryl. I feel like I should have spoken up so much sooner. I knew about your dark place. I always just wanted to tell myself it was temporary, that it would pass and everything would be okay. I didn't want to admit to you or myself that I knew you were having some serious trouble dealing with the things that had happened to you, and been done to you. I just wanted everything to be good and happy, for us to be in love and live happily ever after."

"And while you're beating yourself up about hiding out, not letting people in, let me share with you what I've done. I ran. I figured out about six weeks after we were supposed to get married that I was pregnant. I was already at Amy's then. I didn't tell Mama and Daddy until yesterday. I wouldn't have told them then if Abraham hadn't given me a firm talking to about what I was doing and what I owed them. So yeah, I guess I'd say I get the running and hiding behavior. Until yesterday the only people that knew were Amy and Caesar, Abraham and apparently Shane."

"Shit Baby we both made a mess a things but I done far worse, I hurt so many people. I'ma be spendin' the rest a my life tryin' ta make this up ta Merle and Carol, your Mama and Daddy, Rick an all our friends. And I owe Abraham, owe him a lot. He took care of ya, an he brung ya to me. I can never repay him for that. An whether or not ya ever agree ta let me back in your life, trust me again, I'ma owe ya forever Beth. I don't know how I can ever make things right, but I'd sure like a chance ta try."

"I don't think I can talk about all this anymore right now Daryl, and I'm so tired. I need to sleep. But I also need to go to the bathroom." She laughed softly. "I have a problem though, I'm not sure I can get up off this bed by myself."

He smiled then and stood, he put a crutch under his left arm and he seemed to know how to hold it there so it didn't slip or slide. He reach for her and helped her first to a seated position, and then to her feet. "I've been so tired and I feel so awkward these past couple of weeks. I guess it's because it's so close."

He walked with her the short distance to the bathroom and waited while she used it. She asked through the door if he could get her small toiletry bag from her suitcase, she wanted to brush her teeth. He opened the case and there on top, next to the little bag was the picture of them, the same one he had. It was taken the day they'd graduated from High School.

He was touched, and he felt more guilt and he also felt some hope now. If she was packing that around then maybe, just maybe she'd give him the chance he wanted so much. She opened the door just enough for him to hand her the small bag.

He continued to wait and when she came out he helped her to the bed. "Don't it seem kinda funny that a one-legged man is helpin' ya walk?" And he smiled at her and she had to laugh.

"You always have had a goofy sense of humor Daryl." He pulled the covers back for her and it struck them both the gesture seemed almost intimate.

She got in and said, "I just need an hour or two to rest, then I'll be able to talk more. I'm just so tired."

"I got a few little things ta eat around her but nuthin' special. Ya want me ta go ta the store an get ya anythin' while yer nappin'?"

"No I don't think so, when I wake up you can call for pizza."

That wasn't lost on him either.

Again he felt hope and the hope spurred him on. He got his big pad, pencils, strait edge and the rest of his drafting supplies from the closet shelf and he sat at the kitchen table. While she slept he put the finishing touches on the house plans and then he started on the list of supplies he was going to need.

It had been a couple of hours when suddenly she said, "Your son and I are about to starve to death over here." He laughed, but every time she called the baby his son he also felt overwhelmed. At least he was fortunate enough to be around for a very small part of this pregnancy. But mostly he was grateful that she would refer to the child as his son after all that had happened.

"I'm makin' the call right now I don't want no one starvin' ta death on my watch."

He sat in that kitchen chair by the bed, but she'd stayed in the bed. And watching her sitting up there, munching away on that pizza his mind went to that night they'd laid there together. Propped up by pillows, eating pizza, getting a little buzzed and making love. He wanted all that with her again.

She kept looking at him and thinking about everything they'd had together, everything they were together, how much they'd loved each other and for so long. What she'd told him was the truth, she knew. She knew from the first time they were in that peach orchard and he got just a little bit forceful with her, and the night he got so drunk on his birthday, and the tats he had. She remembered when they'd stayed in this cabin before how reluctant he was to leave, like he was dreading being out in the world. And that night not too long before they were to get married when he'd seen Carol's scars. That had been the worst. But there had been other times too.

In her heart she'd known, but she didn't want to know, she didn't want to admit to herself, to him, to her folks or to Merle that she knew there was trouble. She didn't want that trouble coming into their lives and she supposed she just kept trying to ignore it away, or wish it away. Anything but face it and deal with it. He'd have listened to her if she would have insisted he get help. She was probably the only one who could have made him get that help before he got hurt. Before everything in their world blew up.

And as angry as she'd been and still was, the other thing she knew in her heart was that she loved Daryl Dixon. That was never going to change.

Her question for herself was would she give him that second chance? Could she and should she risk her heart again. She knew what she wanted. She wanted him, she wanted to be a family with him and their son.

Could she trust him enough to never leave her, never flake out on her again?

Something happened then to make her see how much things really had changed, that he really did take this 'help", this big change, seriously.

"I gotta make a call Beth, gonna step out there on the back patio n call Doc Denise. It's been a big day n I need ta get it straight in my head. Do ya care if I tell her what we been talkin' 'bout here? I won't tell her if ya don't want me too."

"It's okay Daryl, I'm glad you're going to call and talk to her, then I want to go for a little walk out there with you, okay?"

"Yeah, that'd be great. I can put my leg back on right after I talk ta her." He stepped out and he was gone about a half hour.

"Lemme help ya up. Ya need me ta get anythin' outta yer case for ya?"

"No I have my bag in there, I'm just going to freshen up and then I'll be ready."

They were slowly walking along that creek bank, not really talking, both of them engrossed in their thoughts. Without either one being conscious of the move, their hands came together and their fingers interlaced.

"I honestly don't know what to do or what to think Daryl. I'd resigned myself to the idea I was never going to see you again, that you didn't love me, didn't want me. Now I don't know what to do."

"Ya ain't gotta decide right now just the fact that yer thinkin' about it that's everythin' Beth. I can be patient."

"I know you've been working on the plan for this place, what is it Daryl?"

"Well as far as the place itself I'm working on having it rezoned from commercial to rural. I plan to turn the office into an office I can use for a small business, carpentry a course. And one of the cabins will be a small shop, I won't need nuthin' too big. Gonne tear down the rest except the one on the end. I'ma salvage as much of each one as I can, windows, doors, lumber, I'ma do my best ta reuse it. What I can't use I'll donate ta Habitat for Humanity, or sumthin' like that."

"I'ma take our cabin, sorry, I mean the one on the end, use what I can from the others. I'll buy what I need, I want to build it into a three bedroom cabin. Be cheaper, faster and easier if I just tore it down and started from scratch, but I ain't got the heart. I'll save one a the others ta live in while I'm in construction mode. I ain't lookin' for fancy, I'm after comfortable and homey. Cozy I suppose is a good word. With a nice deck out back on the creek. 'Course if I's lucky enough ta have a child here I'd build a fenced-in yard n such. So that's what I thought would be good."

He'd gotten shy, nervous, his head was down, and his neck and ears were flushed. "Daryl don't you hang your head like that. Your ideas are wonderful. I love them it all sounds so perfect. Would you show me your drawings?"

He looked at her with a smile then, "Heck yeah I would c'mon we'll go have a look."

"Oh Daryl, this is perfect, and look, the Master Bathroom has an oversized shower." And now her cheeks were pink and she giggled, "You really did think of everything. If anyone can make this work I know you can."

"Ya really think that Beth?"

"Daryl I'm so upset with you right now I think I could pull all your hair out and not even feel one bit bad, well maybe a little bit. But I do know you're very talented at what you do and when you set your mind to something it gets done. I don't even know if you realize what a big deal that is. So many people start things they never finish, but you always complete a project or a task, achieve a goal. That's huge."

"I'll let ya pull my hair out if ya think it'll help ya forgive me."

* * *

She wanted ice cream and he made a quick run to the Pick and Pay, got her Rocky Road and himself some beer. They watched the one TV channel that came in, her sitting on the bed, him in the chair. But she let him hold her hand and he couldn't ask for more than that.

When it was time for bed he went to the closet and got the sleeping bag down. "What're you doing Daryl?"

"Gonna lay this out here on the floor."

"No you can lay up here, it's not like anything's going to happen. I'll be under the covers, you'll be on top. Okay?"

"Yeah thanks Baby." He couldn't believe how nice she was being, how good to him she was. But she'd always been that way, so sweet to him, so giving. Ever since she gave him that pencil the first day of kindergarten.

He loved her so much, and he told her, "I never quit lovin' ya Beth, I loved ya when I's five an I still love ya, always have, an always will."

She didn't say it back but she lightly touched his arm and that was something.

He awoke to her shaking his shoulder. "Daryl wake up it's the baby, the baby's coming."

Startled he'd forgotten he didn't have two legs and he jumped off the bed so fast he landed on his butt. "Oh shit, I forgot sumthin'. I'm on it though Baby, don't panic."

She couldn't help herself, she was laughing, "I don't think I'm the one who panicked."

"If ya wasn't about ta give birth I'd make ya pay for that laugh."

"I think I'll be paying for it when I'm trying to give birth."

He got her and that little overnight bag in the truck. "Markton's got a small hospital will that work?"

"Yes, what ever's close."

"Call your Mama and Daddy Beth, let 'em know we ain't that far from them an maybe they wanna be here."

"You're right, okay."

They got to the hospital, he claimed to be her husband and he claimed to have taken the childbirth classes and they had no reason to doubt him.

They had special maternity rooms, so she wouldn't even have to leave their room. "What can I do ta make it better Beth, ta make it not so painful?"

"I just have to go through it Daryl, all you can do is let me squeeze your hand and call you terrible names."

"Alright I can do that."

She was getting close when Mama came in the room. She hugged her girl, and Daryl felt honored that she hugged him too. "Daddy said he thought it was best if he just had a cup of coffee while you're doing this part." And even though Beth was in the middle of a painful contraction she laughed at that.

They'd only been at the hospital three hours when she gave birth to their little boy. Mama, Beth and Daryl all had tears in their eyes. Daryl kissed her forehead and those blue eyes stared into hers and he told her, "I love ya so much Beth."

And this time she sad it back, "I love you too Daryl."

They didn't see the look of relief on Mama's face. In spite of all the trouble she knew these two were meant to be.

 **One Year Later**

He had so much great help from family and friends. After everything that had happened they'd still come through for him. Rick, Merle, Caesar, Shawn and Glenn. Everyone had been more than willing to pitch in and help with the cabin. And for once he'd been willing to accept help.

Daryl was used to working hard, he'd spent his teens and early 20's busting his ass for the things he'd always hoped to have for him and Beth. He never seemed to stop working on this place.

The new cabin had been completed for a month, the furniture was in, the dishes put away, all of it. They were settled. It was cozy and homey just like they'd wanted it to be.

Little Wesley Abraham Dixon had a nice fenced in yard to play in, and his Mama already had him in swimming lessons at the local Rec Center twice a week.

His Mama and Daddy had married when he was six months old. They'd kept it to strictly the people closest to them, her folks, Merle and Carol, Shawn and his girl, Maggie and her husband Glenn, Rick and his girl, Caesar and Amy, and Abraham and his girlfriend Sasha.

Beth had seldom felt as much relief and gratitude as when Abraham found love. He was crazy about Sasha and she was every bit as crazy about him.

* * *

Being together again hadn't been without its challenges. They'd been separated many months and they had a lot of reacquainting to do, they'd both gone through major changes. There was hurt and disappointments but they were committed to working through all that.

Because above all else they knew they had always loved each other and they always would. They'd never wanted anything more than to be together forever. Their dream had been realized. And they knew how blessed they were.

The greatest lesson they learned was that true and honest love really can conquer all.

 **A/N Again I thank you all so much for reading along. I hope you enjoyed it and are happy with the ending. Please comment / review xo**

 **To see the chapter photo please visit my tumblr bethylmethbrick. Please consider checking out my newest Bethyl story _Love's Highway_. To receive story alerts please follow me here or on my tumblr. Love all y'all! gneebee xo**


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